DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office K9 Dallas to get body armor

DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office K9 Dallas will receive a bullet and stab protective vest thanks to a charitable donation from non-profit organization Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. K9 Dallas’s vest is sponsored by an Anonymous Donor and will be embroidered with the sentiment “This gift of protection provided by Vested Interest in K9s, Inc.”. Delivery is expected within eight to ten weeks.

Canine Dallas is a 20 month old German Shepherd being handled by Deputy Justin Moede. Deputy Moede and Dallas attended the Illinois State Police Canine Academy in Springfield Illinois. The academy consisted of 320 hours to train and certify Dallas in patrol functions, including: tracking, article searches, narcotics detection, and criminal apprehension. Dallas was purchased from Vohne Liche Kennels in Denver, Indiana in August 2016. Dallas enjoys training, going on long walks, playing fetch, and tracking people.

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office has had a K9 program since 1974; Sheriff Scott attended the St. Louis Police Academy with the County’s first K9, Rex Von Victor. A second K9, Prince of Fortune was added to the DeKalb County program in 1975. The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office has the oldest continual K9 program in Northern Illinois outside of Chicago PD. The Sheriff’s Office K9 program is available to all law enforcement agencies 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Dallas is the fourteenth canine with the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office.

Vested Interest in K9s Inc. is a 501c (3) charity located in East Taunton, MA whose mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related agencies throughout the United States. The non-profit was established in 2009 to assist law enforcement agencies with this potentially lifesaving body armor for their four-legged K9 officers. Since its inception, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provided over 2,300 protective vests in 50 states, through private and corporate donations, at a cost of over 1.9 million dollars. All vests are custom made in the USA by Armor Express in Central Lake, MI.

The program is open to dogs actively employed in the U.S. with law enforcement or related agencies who are certified and at least 20 months of age. New K9 graduates, as well as K9s with expired vests, are eligible to participate.

The donation to provide one protective vest for a law enforcement K9 is $1,050.00. Each vest has a value between $1,795 – $2,234 and a five-year warranty, and an average weight of 4-5 lbs. There is an estimated 30,000 law enforcement K9s throughout the United States. For more information or to learn about volunteer opportunities, please call 508-824-6978. Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provides information, lists events, and accepts tax-deductible donations of any denomination at www.vik9s.org or mailed to P.O. Box 9 East Taunton, MA 02718.