Dog Names Ending in Short A Sound

There are tons of stories about hero dogs and amazing survival stories, but the tale (tail) about Lakota the K9 police dog is an amazing blend of both hero and survival. Lakota was a Czech Shepherd dog who served in the Clayton County, Georgia Police Department. A Czech Shepherd is similar to a German Shepherd, but it is heavier and larger with a lighter bone structure. He worked for the Clayton Police Station for a little less than four years. That may seem like a short term of service, but in those four years, Lakota was responsible for over $60,000 in drug seizures, 80 criminal apprehensions, 28 drug seizures, and the recovery of countless pieces of stolen property. 

For much of Lakota’s career, he and his handler, Officer Travis Fox supported local law enforcement agencies in suspected robbery situations. During one of their investigations, there were multiple suspects trapped in an auto collision business, and Lakota was commanded to track the suspects. He immediately found the bag that the men had dropped near the hole in the fence where they entered the business. Lakota led Fox to a car that had its door open, and after the dog searched it with no luck, the police focused on the building where there was a window open. Lakota suddenly crawled under the car, and they heard the suspect crying out that the dog “had him.” 

Lakota was also excellent at what they call bite work. There were many times when Lakota was able to hold the suspect in place with his strong teeth until Fox or other officers were able to apprehend them. He was skilled at holding them without doing any damage unless absolutely necessary. Having a pooch as fast and strong as Lakota as a partner made the pair unbeatable at just about any call. However, on October 3rd of 2011, the pair were both stopped in their tracks by a force even they could not beat. 

Officer Fox and Lakota were on their way to an armed home invasion to do a high-speed sweep when they were involved in a serious car accident. Although Fox was an expert driver trained in high-speed chases and evasion maneuvers, vehicle malfunctions are impossible to predict, and this one was unexpected, and Fox could not stop it. They were traveling at a high rate of speed when the rear tire blew, sending their vehicle out of control. Their car went through a fence and hit a large tree, splitting their vehicle in half and ejecting both Fox and Lakota.

Officer Fox had some broken ribs and cuts all over his body, but Lakota was gravely injured with broken legs, cracked ribs, internal bleeding, and a fracture in his spine. He was flown to the veterinary hospital where he had a five-hour surgery to stop the bleeding and repair his legs. Although Lakota was not expected to live, he was a fighter and recovered within weeks. He was unable to return to work because of his injuries and was retired from the police force. Fox and his family adopted Lakota and he was able to enjoy his retirement and even won the American Humane Association’s Hero Dog Award in 2013 for his bravery.