My husband retired from law enforcement at the beginning of this year. His K9 partner of 2 years, Sherri, has lived with us from the time she was a puppy. We are the first and only family she has ever had. Although she was a working dog, she was also a member of our family.
Our hopes were that she could be medically retired due to some documented medical issues over the last year. We did not want to lose a member of our family. Unfortunately the law enforcement agency was able to “exchange” Sherri for a new dog due to her still being under warranty. Sherri is now out of state staying in the vendor’s on-site kennels to be used as a “contract” dog for the rest of her working life. This means every day she will be carted back and forth to different venues and locations to be put to work, until she can’t work anymore. She will then go back to a small, concrete kennel for the night just to do it all over again the next day. Forever.
Knowing that Sherri will live the rest of her life in a small, concrete cell is heartbreaking. This is a dog who slept in our bed under the blanket for the last two years. She wears sweaters and likes to be massaged with the Thera-gun. Her favorite snacks are white cheddar popcorn and watermelon chunks. She was my husbands work partner and best friend. She was my fur baby and our son’s best bud. She will now sleep in a cold, plastic igloo. She will never run off leash again and never have a family to love her.
We are the only family she has ever known and we know that she is confused and scared to be away from home around complete strangers. We cannot imagine a life without her. We reached out to the company in hopes of purchasing her. Although she can never be resold to another law enforcement agency, due to her medical conditions, the vendor is willing to sell her back to us. While this is good news, it is a large sum of money.
Although it is a large amount of money, we could never imagine abandoning her. We are hoping and praying that our friends, family, and community members can join us in raising support to bring Sherri home. If you feel so led, please donate so that we can be a family again. If you are not in a place to give, please share this fundraiser. We appreciate all the love and support we have had so far as we have had to navigate this emotional taxing situation.
Thank you for your support,
Haley Griggs
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-bring-sherri-home?qid=2e5a6c735ef9444aa008f0b71b0f6b01