Nevada City, CA—Rüdiger Foundation officially welcomed its’ sixth K9 Officer to the Rüdiger Family with the acquisition of K9 Vito. K9 Vito marks the 2nd K9 Officer in the Sheriff’s Office since 1989. Rüdiger Foundation Board members Tina Vernon and Joey Jordan were on hand to present a check in the amount of $31,300 to Sheriff Moon for the purchase and training of Vito.
“We are so excited to be able to continue to support and expand our local K9 officer programs. Our local canines have joined the hundreds statewide in keeping our communities and officers safe. As I have said before, in a perfect world, every officer should have a K9 partner.” Vernon stated.
K9 Vito, a good-sized, very personable 2-year-old Belgian Malinois from the Netherlands, began his intense training with his forever partner Deputy King, in September 2021. The pair performed very well, earning their certifications in December 2021 and allowing the team to join K9 Ranger and Deputy Stanis on patrol. To no surprise, only a few short weeks into being on duty, K9 Vito and Deputy King helped apprehend a suspect through a surrender, demonstrating the main role of these K9 partners to de-escalate potentially dangerous situations.
Deputy King is excited for his new partner, “I am honored to have been chosen as a K9 Handler and to have been partnered with such a great and loyal K9 partner. Vito and I have been training hard in preparation to serve our community. We have really bonded well and are working well as a unit. We are so grateful for Rudiger Foundation and the community support received to make this happen. “
Sheriff Moon, once a K9 handler for the office, was excited to rebuild the Nevada County K9 program. “We are very thankful for the Rüdiger Foundation. This organization has been an amazing law enforcement partner and has strong community support which has allowed us to bring back and build a valuable law enforcement K9 program.”
Rüdiger Foundation was formed to provide ongoing support to local law enforcement K9 programs. 100% of donations fund local K9 programs. Rüdiger Foundation has no office overhead and no paid staff. To donate or learn more about Rüdiger Foundation please visit the website at www.rufk9.org or follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.