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Murphy German Shepherd Dog

 
The Monroe Police Department just welcomed a very special addition to their police force — K-9 Murphy. The German Shepherd Dog was sworn in during a special ceremony attended by members of the local community on Monday, February 9th in Monroe, Connecticut.

Murphy, an 18-month-old male born in Hungary, completed his training with his handler, Officer John McAulay, on January 30, 2015. As a multi-purpose police dog, he is certified in narcotics detection, tracking, building searches, evidence retrieval, apprehension and protection through the North American Police Work Dog Association and Connecticut Police Work Dog Association. Murphy was purchased and trained through Renbar Kennels in New Milford, Connecticut.

This addition of Murphy to the police force was made possible in part by the fundraising efforts of Chris Sweetwood from the Trap Falls Kennel Club.

Unfortunately, many police department K-9 units are suffering budget cuts due to the poor economy, or they are unable to solicit money due to town and municipality codes. As a result, some K-9 handlers forgo training or personally fund their dogs’ needs, and in some communities K-9s may not be replaced upon retirement due to budgetary restrictions. Costs are high, with dogs averaging $10,000. For these reasons, many police K-9 units rely on donations to continue their mission.

Sweetwood set up a Go Fund Me page to help raise money to bring Murphy to Monroe and local residents and dog lovers from around the country responded. More than $5,000 was donated, with  AKC Reunite supplying a matching grant of $5,000.

“Police K-9s provide an invaluable service to the communities they work in and Trap Falls Kennel Club is proud to have played a role in bringing Murphy to Connecticut,” said Sweetwood. “I thank everyone who donated to the Go Fund Me page; it was truly a group effort.”

We hope that Murphy and Officer McAulay have a very successful career together.

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