The South African Police Services (SAPS) have appealed to the community to assist them by donating dogs to their K9 unit.
This follows the deaths earlier this month of two K9 Officers from KwaZulu Natal who were killed during a shoot-out with suspects in Maqongqo.
It was a sad day for SAPS when Officer Shaka from the K9 unit in Shongweni and his fellow Officer Simba were shot and killed in the line of duty.
A third dog, Duke, sustained a gunshot wound to the top of his head but has since been discharged into the care of his handler and is getting stronger by the day.
Police Colonel Vimla Moodley says most of the dogs in the K9 unit are donated by members of the public.
She says the K9 unit in the Eastern Cape is in dire need of dogs as their unit went from 240 active dogs last year to just 89 active dogs this year.
Colonel Moodley says in Makhanda, for example, they only have one active dog on duty.
She says several dogs had to retire last year as most breeds they use develop hip problems after a few years.
AlgoaFM News tracked down one family in Gqeberha who explained why they made the difficult yet rewarding decision a few years ago to give up their dog to the SA Police Services.
Maryka Louw says she and her family wanted to get a companion for their ailing Alsatian.
They responded to a Facebook Market Place advert and picked up an eight-month-old puppy in Overbaakens.
Louw says the puppy was full of energy, incredibly curious and very naughty.
She says the pup would destroy every tennis ball they gave it to play with so these were replaced with apples which were devoured just as enthusiastically.
Louw says keeping their boisterous and noisy new hound in the suburbs proved to be a serious challenge while she also became increasingly concerned about complaints from the neighbours.
It was then that she saw an article in the local newspaper where SAPS asked for donations for their K9 unit.
“We sat down as a family and decided that a career in the Police for our pup might just be the right decision,” recalled Louw.
“I phoned the number and the very next day Sergeant Adriaan Oosthuizen, who is an award-winning handler, came to our house to meet Misty. They put her on a leash, walked around the neighbourhood, gave her some instructions and just like that she passed the test and was whisked away in a police van the very same day.”
When Sergeant Oosthuizen opened the back of the van, Misty jumped in like it was her destiny, made brief eye contact with a teary-eyed Maryke, and never saw her again.
Misty was soon paired up with Warrant Officer Ettienne Gerber and together they went for training at the K9 Academy in Pretoria.
Misty, who is now five years old, works with WO Gerber as a Search and Rescue dog and has made headlines for all the right reasons.
Most recently, she was involved in the search and recovery of the body of a man from Jeffrey’s Bay who had jumped from the 120 metre high Storms River Bridge in May this year.
Louw, who still refers to Misty as her four-legged child, says she is so proud of her dog and loves reading about all her success stories in the media. “It feels great to have played some small part in fighting crime in South Africa and I would not hesitate to do it all again even if it was quite emotional saying goodbye.”
If you own a German Shepherd or Rottweiler between the ages of one and three whom you think would be better suited as a police dog, please consider following Maryke Louw’s route and donate today.
Contact: Colonel Vimla Moodley 082 854 5723 for more information or click here to read more.
