Ringo, the abandoned K-9 officer abandoned at an animal shelter in Jackson, Mississippi, is safe after being rescued by dog trainer Randy Hare after the animal shelter grew suspicious that Ringo was a police dog. The shelter enlisted the help of another officer to identify Ringo then contacted Hare. The Labrador retriever worked for the Jackson PD for nine years as a drug-sniffing dog and also participated in search and rescue and tracking.
Ringo was supposed to be enjoying the quiet life after retiring from the department in October. Instead he was abandoned by his handler Officer Carl Ellis. Once the Jackson PD found out about Ellis' questionable behavior they demoted him from Vice Squad to patrol duty.
The Jackson PD released the following statement:
“The Jackson Police Department respects and holds our canines with high regard just as we do any other officer within our department. They are family, and we do not feel they deserve anything less than a loving home in retirement.”
The department has created new protocols to protect future K-9 officers from falling throw the cracks like Ringo did. This includes welfare checks on retired K-9s. Retired military and police dogs are protected under “Robby’s Law” - it makes working dogs available for their handlers to adopt after retirement.