It wasn’t that long ago that a hero police dog took his final breaths in the arms of his partner and best friend, Officer Steve Henry. The 13-year-old Belgian Malinois named Louis had just finished taking his last walk — a hero’s walk. Louis is one police dog that was well-loved, and everyone misses him already.
HERO CAREER SPANNED A DECADE
Amazingly, Louis’s career spanned an entire decade. For ten whole years, this canny K-9 served the Northumbria Police. In that time, according to Little Things, Louis became a hero. He helped rescue dozens of missing people and catch many burglars, as well.
The police dog even won a national award in 2007 for rescuing a woman that tried to commit suicide.
Image from NP Dog Section via Twitter
Louis retired from the force in 2010 then spent the rest of his days with his partner and best friend — Steve.
A LIFETIME OF FRIENDSHIP
The officer talked with reporters about his former partner.
“I got him when he was just eight weeks old and spent more time with him when he was my police dog than I did with my partner.”
Image from NP Dog Section via Twitter
“It is really sad that he isn’t with us anymore, but it was his time,” explained officer Steve. “He had a great life, and I am glad that he got to have three years of retirement.”
THE ANNOUNCEMENT
As we said, in the end, Steve took Louis for one final hero’s walk before he was put down. Then, the police officer held his best friend in his arms and cried while the former police dog crossed the rainbow bridge.
Image from NP Dog Section via Twitter
The police department made an official announcement on Twitter.
A very sad day. One of our retired PD’s ‘Louis’ has taken his last walk. Louis, who retired in 2010 was a fantastic servant to the region, his list of achievements including the national Police Dog Team Job of the year in 2007. RIP big fella & thankyou pic.twitter.com/0v0FUwWBbG
— NP Dog Section (@npdogsection) October 3, 2018
Officer Steve has been on the force for 20 years.
“We went through a lot together,” said Steve. “That creates a special bond.”
Image from NP Dog Section Via Twitter
Louis leaves behind quite a legacy. You see, he wasn’t just any old police dog — he was also a spokesman for his breed.
“Louis was the first Belgian Shepherd that the Force had taken on, and he paved the way for other as there were doubts as to whether the breed was suitable back then,” explained Steve.
Image from NP Dog section via Twitter
During his retirement, Louis lived with Steve and his family at home along with another police dog named Rudi. One thing we know for sure is that the retired police dog was well loved and cared for until the end. Here at Animals Being Cute, we have met a lot of police dog heroes, but we celebrate every one. These guys work hard and deserve recognition.
Thank you, Louis and officer Steve for your heroic service.
Featured Images from NP Dog Section via Twitter
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