There are a lot of unwanted shelter dogs that are about to be put down, but luckily some of them are saved at the last minute and given a second chance at life.
A dog named Boomer was about to be put down, but he was saved, and now he’s the new K9 for a fire department and saving lives.
Boomer, a German Shepherd who is two years old, was in the care of the Anne Arundel County Shelter in Maryland three months ago. It looked like that was almost the end of his story; he was said to be only hours away from being put down.
According to NBC Washington, officers from the Anne Arundel County Police saw the dog and thought he might be a good fit for their K9 program. This saved his life at the last minute.
Boomer’s life was saved, but they couldn’t find a spot for him in the department. So, they asked other departments in the area if the German shepherd could be of any help.
The Prince George’s County Fire Department in the next county heard about Boomer and decided to add him to their Explosive Detection K9 Unit.
Boomer trained for 14 weeks to be ready for this important, life-saving job. He learned how to use his sense of smell to find explosives.
Corporal Brian Fleig of the Anne Arundel County Police Department says that Boomer’s personality has grown since he started working for the fire department. He says that Boomer went from being a “glass half empty” dog to a “glass half full” dog.
In a video released by the department, Fleig says, “He has a great time out here, he has a purpose, he does a great job finding and discovering explosives, and he’s been a joy to work with over the past few months.”
A police officer from Prince George’s County told NBC Washington, “He basically went from a kennel dog who wasn’t very friendly to a working dog.” “He’s good with people, as you can see. He’s just a good working dog.”
“He’s enjoying life to the fullest right now and can’t wait to go to work every day.”
The department says Boomer will be used for important tasks like looking into spam calls and calls about packages that don’t seem right. He goes home to live with his handler, who has four other dogs, when he’s not on duty.
We’re so glad Boomer didn’t have to be put down and now has a great new job as a fire department K9!
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