Pasco K9s Strike a Pose for New Calendar

The latest calendar to hit the streets of Pasco County features hunks of the four-legged kind.

The “K9: The Dog Squad” calendar boasts up close and personal shots of the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office’s K9 unit and its handlers. Produced by the Pasco Sheriff’s K9 Association, the four-color 2016 calendar is a fundraiser meant to further that organization’s mission.

“The Pasco Sheriff’s K9 Association supports and equips K9 teams throughout the county,” explained sheriff’s office spokesman Eddie Daniels Jr. “Funds raised will help purchase, train, and provide medical care for both active and retired K9s, who live with their partners after their retirement.”

Daniels said each dog in the unit costs a minimum of $800. While dogs are on active duty, their food and vet bills are covered by the county, but after retirement the handlers take on the expenses. The foundation helps cover those costs while sparing taxpayers the burden. In addition, it also helps outfit active duty dogs with protective gear, among other contributions. There are plans to expand the county’s K9 unit by about five dogs and handlers in the near future.

Pasco’s K9 unit is a busy one that fields calls night and day. Based out of the Land O’ Lakes area, the team tackles everything from drug cases to hunts for missing people.

Early Wednesday morning, for example, Deputy Ryan Lennox and K9 Jango were called out to the Holiday area in regard to a possible suicide attempt. Deputies were told a 24-year-old woman had cut her wrists and then fled her home. The team was able to find the woman, who was hiding in a wooded area, and get her medical care, the association reported on its Facebook page.

The 2016 calendar is available for purchase online at a cost of $10. For more information, visit the K9 association’s website.

Photo courtesy of the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office