Medical care concerns end K-9 group, Saginaw Police relationship – WJRT

Anchor/Reporter
SAGINAW, Mich. (WJRT) – A decade-long alliance between a police canine association and Saginaw Police is coming to an end, as the group claims the dogs aren’t getting proper medical care.
The city council just approved the purchase of Krixus, and The Saginaw Valley Police Canine Association usually pays for the dogs, but declined this time because it has questions over whether the dogs are getting prompt medical attention.

The Saginaw City Council approved the purchase of a new K-9 this week using donated funds. Krixus, a 2-year-old Belgian Malinois, already has started training with Officer Megan Nelson.
They have become familiar names over the years to many people in mid-Michigan. Of course there is the now-retired Deebo, and Cigan doing a demonstration with students.
Saginaw Police dogs have become a popular staple of the department.
The entity that purchased many of the dogs over the past ten years is the Saginaw Valley Police Canine Association, but the non-profit’s president, Jody Wilk, has sent an email to the police department and the city council saying its time to end the relationship with the police department.
Wilk declined to talk about the matter on camera, but said that this is something the association did not want to have happen.
This email sent to police chief Bob Ruth earlier this month indicates that the non-profit is worried about the health of the K-9 Denver, which the association purchased in February, but became concerned with issues involving the dogs eyes and teeth.
The association is not sure the dog is healthy enough to do police work.
The association then decided not to provide the funding for the police department’s newest dog, Krixus, because it wanted to see what it called a clean bill of health for that dog.
So, Saginaw City Council approved 12,500 dollars for the purchase of the dog at Monday’s council meeting in an apparent move that the city is distancing itself from the non-profit.
Three city council members said that they were not aware there were any issues between the police department and the K-9 association.
The association said that its raised over $100,000 for the purchase and care of the dogs over the past ten years.
Late Thursday, Saginaw City Manager Tim Morales and Police Chief Bob Ruth put out a statement, saying in part they appreciate all the association has done for the K-9 program, but they have decided to transition to do their own fundraising for their K-9 program.
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Anchor/Reporter
Terry Camp anchors ABC12 News First at Four and ABC12 News at 5:30. He also reports on issues in the Great Lakes Bay Region.
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