reality sound bites. GAINESVILLE Police Dog Grants.
the Gainesville Police Department. Both dogs were donated through a grant pro- gram offered by Universal K9 of San Antonio, Texas. Zoey’s handler, Sgt. Nigel Lowe, had
worked with other police dogs not trained for friendly interaction with people. Zoey’s
which can break the ice during tense situ- ations such as classroom drug sweeps. Over the last two years, Croft has
trained 200 rescue dogs, many of which had been previously scheduled for euthanasia at shelters. “Zoey was rescued within hours of facing that lethal needle,” said Croft. “And so far, she has been one of our best performers.” Croft believes every police depart-
ment should have a K9 in the ranks. “For certain investigations or raids, their help is like no other, literally sniffing out crime where human officers fail to,” he said. Do you know of a police department
Alachua County likes to do things a little differently when it comes to “hiring” police K9s. The Alachua Sheriff ’s Office and the Gainesville Police Department each have a rescue dog, specially-trained as drug-sniffing dogs. Typically, police agen- cies import specially-bred German Shepherd or Belgian Malinois dogs from Europe, costing police departments upwards of $20,000 per dog. Sometimes, those dogs don’t perform as advertised. Brad Croft of Universal K9, said,
“Any dog can do this type of work. It’s not the breed of the dog. It’s the will of the dog.”
Zoey, a Black Mouth Cur mix, works
for the Alachua County Sheriff ’s Office and Jet, a black Labrador Retriever, is with
WESLEY CHAPEL Taking The Leash With Rotary.
Air Animal Inc. recently sponsored a new dog park in their home town of Tampa through the Rotary Club of New Tampa and the City of Tampa. Walter Woolf, VMD, Air Animal’s founder, is a member of
the Interbay Rotary Club of Tampa and supports many com- munity causes including his club’s Ride for Autism and the Humane Society of Tampa Bay. “Before the New Tampa Rotary Dog Park opened May
2, residents had to drive 45 minutes or more to take their pooches to off-leash parks. Dog parks are perfect playgrounds for pets who are licensed and immunized. We jumped at the chance to invest in this amenity for Tampa,” Dr. Woolf said. The New Tampa Rotary Dog Park features lots of trees,
water fountains for pets and people, seating areas, sanitation stations and separate areas for large and small dogs.
U
Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn and a Wesley Chapel resident at the ribbon cutting of New Tampa Rotary Dog Park.
20 THE NEW BARKER
Air Animal Inc. has served pet owners all over the world since 1977 and is recognized as a premier pet mover.
AirAnimal.com
www.TheNewBarker.com
that wants to add a K9? Universal K9’s Police Dog Grant provides the opportuni- ty to do so without spending tens of thou- sands of dollars. The dog will be healthy, young and come with all shots and health records. “All these dogs need is a chance to
prove themselves. They’ll work every bit as hard as the purebred dogs brought in from overseas,” said Croft.
U
(Above left): Brad Croft, Universal K9 holds Jet. (Above right): Sgt. Nigel Lowe, Alachua Sheriff’s Office and Zoey.
temperament, however, is perfect for Lowe’s current role as a supervisor over ASO’s school resource deputy program. She is trained to allow kids to pet her,
To learn more about the Police Dog Grant program, visit
UniversalK9Inc.com or call Brad Croft at 210.858.6830.
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