Worcester County Sheriff’s Office K9 Maya to get body armor
West Boylston – The Worcester County Sheriff’s Office has announced K9 Maya, a two year old single purpose trailing bloodhound, will receive a bullet and stab protective vest thanks to a charitable donation from the non-profit organization Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. K9 Maya’s vest is being sponsored by the Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. 2015 “Santa Paws and Grinch” fundraiser hosted by Especially for Pets in Medway, MA and will be embroidered with the sentiment “In memory of K9’s Molly and Adam”.
Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. is a 501c (3) charity located in East Taunton, MA whose mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related agencies throughout the United States. The non-profit was established in 2009 to assist law enforcement agencies with this potentially lifesaving body armor for their four-legged K9 officers. Since its inception, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. has provided over 1,900 protective vests in 49 states through private and corporate donations at a cost of over 1.7 million dollars. All vests are custom made in the USA by Armor Express in Central Lake, MI.
The program is open to dogs actively employed in the U.S. with law enforcement or related agencies who are certified and at least 20 months of age. New K9 graduates, as well as K9s with expired vests, are eligible to participate.
The donation to provide one protective vest for a law enforcement K9 is $1,050.00. Each vest has a value between $1,795 – $2,234 and an average weight of 4-5 lbs. There are an estimated 30,000 law enforcement K9s throughout the United States.
“The Worcester County Sheriff’s Office is very appreciative of the Vested Interest in K9s Organization for their generous donation of a bullet and stab protective vest for our K9 Maya. Our K9’s work very hard each day facing challenging situations and keeping us safe, it’s extremely important we do all we can to help keep them safe in the line of duty.” said Worcester County Sheriff Lew Evangelidis.
For more information or to learn about volunteer opportunities, please call 508-824-6978. Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provides information, lists events, and accepts tax-deductible donations of any denomination at www.vik9s.org or mailed to P.O. Box 9 East Taunton, MA 02718.
