Three Carrboro police officers now have special protection when they face on-the-job dangers thanks to a charitable donation.
The recipients might like to lick the donors' faces or at least play a game of fetch.
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These law enforcement officers are K9s named Titus, Turbo and Blitz, and they just got special stab-proof and bullet-proof K9 vests.
There is an estimated 30,000 law enforcement K9s throughout the United States. Titus, Turbo, Blitz and their human partners play an important role for the Carrboro Police Department.
Most K9s who wear a badge are male dogs, except for Blitz.
"She is feisty," said Blitz’s partner, Officer L. McLamb. She's the youngest dog of the department at 3 years old.
The human officers had an intense 14-week training program with their dogs. They are rarely ever separated.
“They are our partners. They are our family members,” McLamb said.
Officer K. Kimry, who partners with Turbo, said K9 teams often face potentially life-threatening situations. She and Turbo have searched a building when it was unclear if someone was inside.
Tracking for a suspect who's armed in the dark is a dicey situation for both human and animal, McLamb said.
Human officers have had an advantage over most of their K9 partners, routinely wearing protective vests to minimize the risk of being shot or stabbed. Most law enforcement units, especially small-town police departments, can’t afford the added costs of the same protection for their dogs.
The Carborro Police Department's new K9 vests are valued between $1,744 and $2,283 with a five-year warranty. With the help of donors, the non-profit Vested Interest in K9s answered a request from Carrboro K9 officer J. Glenn to provide vests for their dogs. A donation of $950 can provide one body armor vest for a law enforcement K9, and all donations are tax-deductible.
“I mean, he's going to do everything to protect me, so I feel better now that he has something to protect him,” Kimry said of Turbo.
In May in Iredell County, Mooresville K9 officer Jordan Sheldon was shot and killed during a traffic stop.
Kimry held up Turbo’s vest with a special inscription stitched in: “On the front of our chest plates on our vests, it has, ‘In honor and memory’ of him,” she said.
It's a reminder for each K9 team that nothing is "routine" while they and their dogs are on the job.
“It just added protection and guarantee, because we all want to come home at the end of the night," Kimry said. "We all have families.”