Wrocław, Poland, July 24, 2017 (Newswire.com) - Wrocław, Poland, July 24, 2017 (Newswire) -Andrew De Niese of Wrocław, Poland has started a fundraiser to meet an important need in the community, which in this case is a new police dog. Early in 2017, the K9 dog named Spike had passed away. The problem was that there are no K9 training facilities in Wrocław, and the police department had a very limited budget. Hence, there has been no opportunity yet to get a replacement for Spike. This is what De Niese now aims to address.
Andrew De Niese hopes to be able to raise between $30,000 and $50,000, which is what will be needed to replace Spike and to house and feed the new dog for a year. He says: "Spike was a member of the community and we all miss him. He can never be really replaced, but we feel that we need a new K9 dog for the community. We have noticed that Spike’s previous handler is now on traffic duty, and we believe that that is a waste of his skills. I'm so heartened to see how the community is coming together to raise money to find a new police dog."
Normally, when a K9 dog passes away or is retired, the police department has to wait for the next budget cycle before they can put in a proposal. Furthermore, having the proposal accepted can take a year at least. While the police department has already submitted a proposal, they are not feeling optimistic about the outcome. This is because they realized that there is hardly a demonstrable need for a police dog in such a small community. A member of the police force says: "We just don't have as big a drug problem here like in the bigger cities, which is what the dogs are trained for. But we liked having Spike here, and we regarded him as a member of the community and a true officer walking the beat."
Usually, the long waiting period is not hard for police departments to cope with, as they have several dogs. In this case, however, there was only one. Also, receiving a newly trained K9 dog doesn't mean it will immediately be in operation either, as the handler has to get to know the new dog, which can take several months as well. Hence, Wrocław residents, and Andrew De Niese, in particular, felt that there was a sense of urgency in getting a new police dog.
K9 dogs are incredibly expensive because they are highly trained. They also require a specialized diet. Fortunately, the special handler and patrol car are already in place in Wrocław, which means the overall investment can be lowered significantly.
Community members all agreed that a new police dog should be made available to the town, but there was some disagreement as to where the money should come from. Wrocław is not a rich community, and people find it difficult to donate money. However, through a fundraiser that involves the community as a whole, De Niese is able to give people the opportunity to have a nice day out with the family, while supporting this important goal at the same time. He says: "During the fundraiser, we will have music, stalls, food, crafts, and more. It will be a great day so that people can enjoy themselves, while at the same time raising the necessary funds to purchase the dog."
Meanwhile, some people believe that the city's budget should pay for the dog. However, it seems that they only want to push the government into giving the city a larger budget to spend in the first place. The mayor of Wrocław agrees that a dog should be brought in again, and he also misses Spike. Spike had developed a rare form of cancer that required treatment until he was eventually euthanized. The city paid for all of the expenses incurred during Spike's illness, and this has made it impossible to have a budget for purchasing a new police dog.
The mayor has applauded Andrew De Niese for his efforts. If successful, a new K9 dog could be patrolling the Wrocław streets within just six months, because so many provisions are already in place. He has also highlighted the fact that the city does have funds to look after the dog once it is in place, so community members need not worry about that.
So far, many people have already expressed an interest in De Niese's fundraising efforts. It looks like he will easily be able to hit his target. The police have also agreed that, for his efforts, he will be given the honor to choose the new dog.
Source: Andrew De Niese
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