Last Tuesday Ron Huard, a Moorhead, Minn., resident, procured several bulletproof vests for area police dogs. Because police dogs are often as important to police work as human officers, other police departments should immediately mandate the use of bulletproof vests for these dogs.
Motivated by the fatal shooting of a police dog in Philadelphia, Huard began a campaign to raise money to purchase vests for the police dogs of the Moorhead and Fargo, N.D., police departments. He persuaded Kmart, Wal-Mart, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo Inc. and Goldberg Bail Bonds to each purchase one $350 vest.
Most police departments feel police dogs are as valuable as human officers. Within the ranks, the dogs are seen as partners rather than pets. Their owners/partners also personally care for the dogs when not on the job. The constant interaction forges close bonds between the officers, their families and the dogs.
Police dogs deserve as much protection as human officers. Often the first to enter dangerous situations, the dogs are at great risk of injury and even death. Considering the danger police dogs face, as well as their worth to their partners and their families, they deserve as much protection as their human counterparts.