What happens to Police Dogs when they retire?

It’s my understanding that most police dogs are adopted by their handlers when they reach retirement age.

Our clinic works on active duty police dogs, and I can tell you that the ones that we see are not something to be thrust upon an unsuspecting pair of parents. You don’t mention your parents familiarity with dogs, but a retired police dog is probably not a dog for beginners. The ones that we deal with are quite aggressive.

My suggestion would be to carefully screen mature dogs at your local shelter and then either take on training yourself, or find a good quality training facility and gift your parents with lessons. But this should not be a surprise gift – work closely with your parents and makes sure that this is a decision that they are happy with.

Most are so good and happy that they die while still working. I have only known two to retire and they stayed with the family. Talk to the local handler and see where to get a trained dog. Never get an animal for parents or grandparents unless you ask them. They may not want another dog and if they do they should be “tested” with the dog first at the trainers.

When i was younger, a school friend’s parents adopted an alsation police dog, and he seemed to be a good family dog.

Interesting. Thanks for the help! How do I find a handler?

I know a handler. Both retired at the same time and continue to live together off duty. It would have been impossible and unsafe to retrain him. The dog, too. ;-)

In the UK the dogs generally remain with their handler and live with them at home when they retire. I know of one ex-police dog that was adopted by someone else, but most handlers will not give up their dogs.

If you have your mind made up on a German Shepherd, then what I’m about to suggest as alternatives won’t mean much.

But most Police dogs go to the homes of their handlers so I should think it would be really difficult to find one.

However, I know that there is a large network of rescuers who are devoted to retired racing Greyhounds. When they no longer make money for the owners, they are most frequently euthanized if no one intervenes.

They make wonderful pets and they don’t need as much exercise as most people assume they would. For the majority of the days in their racing career they spend most of their time in their crates or kennels and only get out once a day to run. So if people have a yard where they can run around once a day, they’re fine.

Any training they need is usually already taken care of by the volunteers in the rescue groups. This primarily involves acclimating them to stairs and just being in a normal home.

Everyone I’ve ever encountered who has adopted one of these Greyhounds has been thrilled with them. These dogs are just so happy to be able to enjoy human companionship and the comforts of a home compared to the sterility of the track environment. They make wonderful affectionate couch potatoes perfectly suited for an elderly couple.

I’m sure there’s a group somewhere in your area if you just do a search for Greyhound Rescue groups.

Another possibility would be a retired guide dog or similar type of service dog. Sometimes they have a difficult time with another animal taking their place so it’s better to adopt them out to a loving home. I would assume that’s a more likely scenario vs. a Police dog.

Betty White adopted Tom Sullivans guide dog and they wrote a book together about it.

Obviously most service dogs tend to be Labs or similar but there may be an occasional Shepherd in there.

Anyhow, these are just two alternatives off the top of my head. The other thing I thought about if you’re set on a GS is that some of the better funded shelters have adoption counselors who will set up a waiting list and when the type of dog you specify comes in, they will give you a call.

With the economy the way it is, I’m sure you won’t have that much trouble finding an already well trained dog in need of a home.

I will second the Greyhound idea. I know someone that has adopted four ex-racing greyhounds and they’re wonderful dogs. People imagine they need a lot of exercise but they don’t, they’re happy just to laze around in the house and have a stroll round the park. Also they retire young so you wouldn’t be taking on an elderly dog in need of special care.

I will look into the Greyhounds. The reason I brought all this up, is that my parents refuse to move, even though the house I grew up in is no longer in a nice area. It was, and one point an upper middle class neighborhood with no crime, but that has long since passed. I want the dog to be able to protect them should something happen. (or at least intimidate an intruder) and the Greyhounds seem like an excellent idea, or a retired service dog.