For the last several years I have been attending Police Week in Washington, D.C. to honor our fallen officers, and will be again this year. Thousands from around the world attend. During the week there are many events, such as The Blue Mass, Candlelight Vigil, Honor Guard Competition, Emerald Society & Pipe Band March and Service and of course the National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service. The events surrounding Police Week brings us all together for a week of competition, laughter, camaraderie and tears of sorrow. We are there to honor our fallen brothers and sisters. Although I have seen Mounted Police Units and Canine Units in attendance, I don’t recall seeing anything special to honor the fallen police animals, whether they are horses or canines. Canines and horses provide such a great service and like us they put their lives on the line.
As I prepared to write this article, I searched the internet to see if there was a location like the National Peace Officers’ Memorial that was dedicated to fallen canines and horses. I did find that many states have a Canine Memorial, but there isn’t anything on the national level. The only information I was able to find was on the United States Police Canine Association (USPCA) website. USPCA along with Ray Allen Manufacturing are working on putting together the National Law Enforcement Animal Memorial. It appears that they are in the early stages, but at least someone is working on it. USPCA states “the first phase of this endeavor is to put together a list of K9’s, horses, and any other certified law enforcement animal that has died in the line of duty (we don’t want to leave any animals our). The purpose of the memorial is to honor just the animals that died in that way – not from old age or health, but while being engaged in the job.” On the USPCA page, they have a form that you can fill out to add the police animal to the list. The next step in the process will be to get backing from Washington, D.C. and verify all the names and raise money to build the memorial.
The sacrifices that our police animals make are just as worthy of a memorial, so show your support by visiting the National Law Enforcement Animal Memorial page at USPCA.
Through my research, the only website that I could find that did list “Line of Duty Deaths” for animals was on the Officer Down Memorial Page. The only animal deaths listed were of Canines and there were 18 Canine deaths in 2012. In honor of the fallen Canines, I would like to list their names here.
K9 Ivan
Tucson Police Department, AZ
EOW: Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Cause of Death: Gunfire
K9 Nash
United States Department of Justice - Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, US
EOW: Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Location: South Carolina
K9 Tank
Utah Highway Patrol, UT
EOW: Friday, November 16, 2012
Cause of Death: Struck by vehicle
K9 Sasha
Warwick Police Department, GA
EOW: Saturday, September 1, 2012
Cause of Death: Heat exhaustion
K9 Harley
Des Moines Police Department, IA
EOW: Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Cause of Death: Heat exhaustion
K9 Chuck
Jackson County Sheriff's Department, MS
EOW: Thursday, August 23, 2012
Cause of Death: Heat exhaustion
K9 Morgan
Mendocino County Sheriff's Office, CA
EOW: Monday, August 20, 2012
Cause of Death: Exposure to toxins
K9 Magnum
Anderson Police Department, IN
EOW: Monday, August 20, 2012
Cause of Death: Gunfire
K9 Serge
Camden Police Department, NJ
EOW: Thursday, August 9, 2012
Cause of Death: Heat exhaustion
K9 Creed
Panama Police Department, OK
EOW: Sunday, August 5, 2012
Cause of Death: Gunfire
K9 Zak
Mercer County Sheriff's Office, OH
EOW: Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Cause of Death: Heat exhaustion
K9 Kilo
Anderson Police Department, IN
EOW: Thursday, July 26, 2012
Cause of Death: Gunfire
K9 Hades
Bexar County Sheriff's Office, TX
EOW: Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Cause of Death: Heat exhaustion
K9 Vegas
Bexar County Sheriff's Office, TX
EOW: Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Cause of Death: Heat exhaustion
K9 Chase
Lee County Sheriff's Office, VA
EOW: Monday, July 16, 2012
Cause of Death: Gunfire
K9 Jeg
Arizona Department of Public Safety, AZ
EOW: Thursday, July 12, 2012
Cause of Death: Heat exhaustion
K9 Andy
Vermilion Police Department, OH
EOW: Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Cause of Death: Fall
K9 Nero
Hattiesburg Police Department, MS
EOW: Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Cause of Death: Automobile accident
Stay Safe!
