What we celebrate when we celebrate K9 Dax’s police career
K9 Dax is getting quite the public send-off as he moves into retirement as the Lake County Sheriff’s Department’s crime fighting police dog.
Dax was celebrated at a ceremony in Libertyville Wednesday amid a crush of newspaper and broadcast cameras, speeches and hundreds of well-wishers. As some of our editors couldn’t help noticing, the 750-word departmental announcement last week of his impending retirement was more glowing and detailed than similar announcements of the departures of many local department police chiefs.
But lest you think the 10-year-old German Shepherd is being singled out for all this attention merely for his status as one of man’s best friends, consider his achievements.
He is something of a celebrity among his canine colleagues, having appeared in “People” magazine as well as on national television in the “Today Show,” “America’s Top Dog,” “Hero Dogs” and more.
His list of awards would distinguish the resume of the most accomplished human police veteran. His tracking, search and protection skills have earned him top honors in national trials by the United States Police Canine Association, including six regional championships and two certifications for exceptional tracking. He’s been recognized by, among other organizations, the Chicago Crime Commission, the Italian American Police Association, the Illinois Sheriff’s Association, the German Shepherd Dog Club of America and the Illinois House of Representatives.
And, most important, he has been a successful crime fighter. His retirement announcement credits Dax and his handler, Deputy John Forlenza, with locating more than 400 missing endangered people or fleeing felons and says he’s been involved in seizing “hundreds of kilos of illegal drugs, millions of dollars …, dozens of firearms discarded by offenders, (and) dozens of … vehicles.”
Even his “end of watch” is distinguished by heroism. Dax was temporarily paralyzed in March while helping apprehend a felon who was fleeing police.
So, yes, he deserves the honors, even if, let’s be honest, he surely doesn’t understand all the fuss. Meeting Hoda and Jenna on the Today Show in New York likely doesn’t stand out in his mind as one of the highlights of his life, and his many plaques and certificates mean far more to us humans than they do to him.
But that is the point, isn’t it? We honor K9 Dax’s service not because it means something to him, but because it represents something to us. Courage. Trustworthiness. Loyalty. Commitment to duty. These are qualities to be found in people in any profession and certainly among the police chiefs, executives and street-level officers in Dax’s line of work.
We love Dax, and the many other K9 officers serving in police departments throughout the suburbs, because, well, they’re dogs and it takes something of a superhuman effort not to love, or at least appreciate, dogs. But we honor them because they represent the best in what we hope for in ourselves.
And that’s what qualifies for quite the public send-off.
• Jim Slusher, jslusher@dailyherald.com, is managing editor for opinion at the Daily Herald. Follow him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/jim.slusher1 and on Twitter at @JimSlusher.