Deputy Chris Freshe with K-9 Leo
A member of the Greene County Sheriff’s Office is due to retire and a fundraising effort is happening now for his replacement.
Sheriff Jack Williams says they are looking to retire their German shepherd dog Leo within the next year and want to purchase and train a new canine. Williams notes Leo has been with the Sheriff’s Office since 2013, and typically they retire a canine when they’ve passed their prime, and so they can enjoy their remaining years as a regular dog.
“Recently we used Leo to help search a residence for a wanted subject. And his hips are getting to the point to where he’s having trouble jumping and going up and downstairs. After seeing that in the residence, we decided it was time to start looking now and try to raise money to purchase another dog.”
Williams says they need to raise $15,000 to purchase and train a dog, along with updating the equipment in the K-9 patrol vehicle, which is going on 15 years-old. He points out there are certain dogs that law enforcement looks at, which is becoming increasingly difficult.
“It’s really hard to find. Also with the COVID and the new (U.S.) Supreme Court rulings a lot of the trainers locally are getting out of it. So we have to reach out and go farther to get canines.”
Williams says they are raffling off a complete vehicle detailing service with each raffle ticket at $5. The raffle ends October 25th and tickets can be purchased through the Sheriff’s Office Facebook page or at the law enforcement center in Jefferson from 8am-4:30pm Monday-Friday. Williams adds, donations can be accepted anytime with checks made payable to the Greene County Sheriff’s Office with the payment earmarked for the canine department. To hear more from Williams about the K-9 unit, listen to today’s Community State Bank in Paton Let’s Talk Greene County program.
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