Fund aims to help ex-K9s

Emily Yerkes, left, and Stacey Arnold. Enlarge

If you ask Stacey Arnold, Ringo was a star.

Not that Ringo.

She's talking about the one with alert ears, furry tail, and an incredibly sensitive nose.

During his nine years as a K9 narcotics trooper for the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Ringo helped his handler, Trooper Arnold, seize more than $53.6 million worth of illegal drugs.

But despite his considerable crime-fighting efforts, Ringo was not immortal.

A year after retiring from drug-sniffing, the dog died of throat cancer.

His demise took a toll on Trooper Arnold, who had adopted him into the home she shares with Emily Yerkes.

"We assumed financial responsibility for him. The sole responsibility falls onto the adoptive family," Trooper Arnold said.

To help other retired law-enforcement dogs and their adoptive owners, Trooper Arnold and Ms. Yerkes created the Retired Police K9 Assistance Fund, aka Ringo's Legacy, a fund to help pay for critical health care needs for retired law enforcement and military dogs.

Ringo's Legacy has established a retired police K9 assistance fund. The volunteer group and its fund are outside Trooper Arnold's job with the patrol.

Through fund-raisers and donations, the women hope to help pay for medical bills and other expenses of retired K9s across the country.

For now, they are focusing on Ohio dogs trying to make a transition into a more peaceful life.

"We'd hate to have one of these dogs who did so much for the state in keeping the streets safe be put down because the owner can't afford health care," Ms. Yerkes said. "We see a need because other K9s are out there who might need some help."

As a law-enforcement officer, Ringo's statistics were impressive.

The highly trained Dutch shepherd assisted in seizing 1,717 pounds of marijuana, 837 pounds of cocaine, 20 pounds of ecstasy, and 13 pounds of heroin. He also helped take 24 weapons off the streets and confiscate nearly $2.5 million in illegally obtained U.S. currency.

Toledo lawyer Tom Matuszak was an assistant Lucas County prosecutor when he met Trooper Arnold and Ringo. He said he needed to learn about K9 handlers and their dogs to use their work in court against criminals.

Mr. Matuszak said he got behind the organization's efforts to help retired law enforcement and military dogs after learning of Ringo's plight.

He now is the organization's volunteer lawyer.

"It could be a heck of a burden of adopting a dog in its later years, because that's the time they have the most health problems," he said.

"I spent four or five years of my years as a prosecutor handling almost exclusively dog drug cases. I saw what these dogs were doing," he added. "The way I see it, every time these dogs were successful, they were taking drugs out of my kids' school system."

To help raise money, Ringo's Legacy is to be host for a fund-raising event Saturday at the Erie Street Market. Featuring food, drink, and entertainment - including a K9 drug-seizure presentation - the event is a kick-off for the fund.

Warren Vess characterized K9 dogs' work as "an American service."

"I think so many people don't realize exactly what K9 police dogs can do. They can replicate what humans and machines cannot. They provide such a valuable service," said Mr. Vess, marketing director for Yark Automotive Group, which is sponsoring the Erie Street Market event.

"There are these dogs who do so much for our community and yet there are so many items that are unfunded. Once these K9s are retired, they don't have anybody who's helping them other than their handlers," he said.

After Ringo retired, Trooper Arnold was paired with Rony, a German shepherd.

The two continue to work the Ohio Turnpike, where millions of dollars in drugs are confiscated every year.

Although she has the playful, yet serious, Rony to keep her busy, Trooper Arnold still fights tears when she speaks about her constant companion of more than a decade.

"I think about Ringo every single day," she said. "For all he did, he deserves to have his name remembered. One way is by helping other dogs.

"He did so much for northwest Ohio, and now he can do something for other K9 dogs," she said.

For more information on the organization or to buy tickets for the fund-raiser, go to Retired Police K9 Assistance Fund on Facebook.

Contact Erica Blake at:

eblake@theblade.com

or 419-213-2134.