DALLAS — A German Shepherd born in the Slovak Republic, Aron was an active member of the Dallas Township Police Department.
He served as a K-9 drug detection officer with the department since 2009, but over Memorial Day weekend it was discovered he had lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph nodes.
Aron died only a few week later on June 8, at 9 years old.
In his memory, state Sen. Lisa Baker presented a special plaque and picture collage to Dallas Township Police Chief Robert Jolley and Aron’s handler, officer Brian Feeney.
“I just wanted to pay tribute and acknowledge Aron’s service to the community,” Baker said. “It was really my way of acknowledging and thanking him. I hate to call it his ‘End of Watch,’ but it really is.”
The plaque featured a signed letter from Baker to the Dallas Township police department commemorating Aron’s service while the collage featured Feeney and Aron doing a demonstration at one of the local schools.
Not all dogs have what it takes to be K-9 officers, but Feeney knew Aron was special, saying he’d spent time with him before they were paired together.
“I had trained with Aron when I still had my previous dog (Macko),” said Feeney. “I had gone to a couple of training classes and just watching him, he was already partially trained when we decided we needed a new dog, so it was just finishing the training when we took him in.”
According to Feeney the rules about where the K-9 officer lives is different within most police departments. He said some dogs will stay at the stations, but some will live with their handlers to an extent of just giving the dog a place to sleep.
Feeney went above and beyond, making Aron a member of his family.
“You form a bond with them,” Feeney said. “You’re with them 24 hours a day, seven days a week; you’re always with them. That’s why you form such a tight bond with the dog and they’ll do whatever you want them to do because you form that trust. The trust is that I’m not going to let him get hurt, and he’ll always be there to protect me.”
When Aron wasn’t saving the day, he was often found within the community as calm as can be attending various community events.
He knew the difference between work and play, which made him very approachable for people to get acquainted with, something Feeney always wanted.
“You don’t want people to have a fear of the dog,” said Feeney. “You want people to respect the dog, and you always want to ask permission to pet any dog, I don’t care if it’s a pet or a working dog. You don’t want the kids to be afraid of him when they see him out. If I’m out walking him I don’t want the kids to be afraid to come over and talk to us. It’s just another way to help better the relationship with the community, too.”
Aron’s death means the police department is currently searching for a new K-9 officer, but Jolley says it is not as easy at it seems because of the funding that is needed.
“We’ve looked for funding sources to replace the dog,” said Jolley. “The good part is, with our program, we’re just simply replacing the dog. We don’t need to train a handler all over again and Brian is more than knowledgeable on police K-9s; that is a cost savings right there. It’s just getting the right dog to match with him and that they become familiar with each other.”
With Aron having been gone for nearly two months, both Jolley and Feeney agree it hasn’t been the same without him.
“It’s quiet,” said Feeney. “He’d bark all the time if you walked anywhere near the truck we rode in when he was in there, he’d bark and carry on. That’s a big thing, even when I’m working, it’s very quiet.”
