A Washington County woman wanted to make sure the money from her late husband’s trust went to a good cause, and she picked the K-9s that serve and protect the community as the recipient of a generous donation.
The sheriff’s office announced that each K-9 serving on the force has been outfitted with a ballistic vest.
The vests by Point Blank Body Armor are resistant to bullets and knives. They are also light and thin, and deputies said they are proven effective during high-risk deployments.
Each vests costs $631 and comes with a five-year warranty.
The purchases were made possible thanks to Washington County resident Donna Lane.
The sheriff’s office said Lane made a donation from her late husband’s trust, and the purchase of the vests was approved by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office Foundation board for the Canine Unit.
That unit currently consists of three tracking dogs – Chase, Oz and Radar – one narcotics detection K-9 – Tau – and three dual purpose teams – Stark, Taz and Tux.
The tracking dogs are trained to locate, follow and alert on fresh human scent, which includes suspects who have fled from crime scenes or who have barricaded themselves in a building or house.
The K-9s are also trained to protect the handler and to keep a violent or dangerous person from escaping.
K-9 teams are on-call 24 hours a day and they also participate in dozens of public demonstrations every year.
For more information, go to www.co.washington.or.us/Sheriff/FightingCrime/Patrols/canine-unit.cfm.