Buckeye police K-9 retires after 6 years of service
BUCKEYE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) - The Buckeye Police Department said goodbye to one of their own as their beloved K-9 Cliff retired this month. For six years, K-9 Cliff, a Belgian Malinois, worked alongside his handler, Officer Dave Smith, to remove dangerous drugs from the streets, locate suspects, and keep the community safe.
Buckeye police held a retirement ceremony for K-9 Cliff, starting with his final radio call. K-9 Cliff joined Officer Smith in their patrol car to hear the dispatcher pay tribute to his career. Police Chief Larry Hall then presented K-9 Cliff and Officer Smith with a plaque and dog tag for his years of service and recognized him as a veteran of the Buckeye Police Department. Of course, no retirement party would be complete without many toys, treats and pets that K-9 Cliff also received.
To become an official police dog, K-9 Cliff completed the canine academy, which included hundreds of hours of training in drug detection and integration into police operations. He was trained to sniff out drugs like marijuana, cocaine, heroin, meth and ecstasy. As a very social dog, K-9 Cliff loved getting pets from members of the public and played a part in Buckeye PD’s outreach, helping educate the community about his training and role in fighting crime.
Thank you, K-9 Cliff, for keeping the West Valley police officers and community safe.
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