A drug-sniffing police dog nearly overdosed on spilled heroin—but her handler came to the rescue with a shot of Narcan.
K9 Abbie, a Belgian Malinois/German Shepherd mix who works with the Clackamas County, Oregon Sheriff’s Office learned firsthand how dangerous law enforcement can be.
Officer Abbie and her handler, Deputy Eliseo Ramos, were doing a routine contraband search in the E block of the Clackamas County Jail, a Sheriff’s Department press release reported.
K9 Abbie, whose specialty is detecting drugs, located some narcotics hidden in a cell. During the search, the container, which contained heroin, tipped over and spilled, exposing the dog to a dangerous dose of the potent narcotic.
Abbie started salivating, heavily, shaking her head and blinking—signs of opiate exposure.
Another K9 handler, Deputy Erik McGlothin was able to get a canine-sized dose of Narcan, the opiate-blocking drug, to Abbie within 15 minutes.
The Narcan worked. The heroin Abbie had absorbed was neutralized before any permanent damage was done.
Deputies took Abbie to VCA Animal Hospital for treatment and observation. She was pronounced fine and fit and released the next day.
Saved by the Generosity of the Community
The Narcan kit was one of only six available to Clackamas County K9 handlers.
The kits weren’t in the Sheriff’s Department budget—a nonprofit group raised the funds.
Deputy Ramos and #K9 Abbie speaking with the news media after Abbie was exposed to contraband heroin while searching the jail last night. Fortunately, K9 Abbie was given a dose of Narcan, which may have saved her life. She’s already out of the hospital and ready for her close-up. pic.twitter.com/KSh4zOCOLC
— Clackamas Sheriff (@ClackCoSheriff) August 8, 2018
“Over the past couple of months, the nonprofit Friends of Clackamas County K9 received donations from the community for ballistic vests for our current dogs,” explained Sgt. Brad O’Neil of the K9 Unit.
“However, all our current working dogs already have vests. But the donors told us they still wanted their money to help out with life-saving measures for the K9 unit.”
The K9 unit decided to use the funds to purchase Narcan kits for their dogs—a decision which Abbie and her handler surely appreciate.
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