Modesto police bought a wellness dog. Why is the purchase generating growls from the public?
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The decision by Modesto police to buy a wellness dog from a breeder has brought some stress upon the department, with people criticizing it on social media for not adopting a dog from a shelter.
“You had the perfect chance to set a prime example to our community by saving a rescue dog,” reads one comment on the department’s April 29 Facebook post about the dog, a Goldendoodle named Maverick. “There are so many dogs at the shelter who are dying to share their love and loyalty that could’ve easily filled this spot. So disheartening.”
The post generated 400 comments, with the majority dinging the department but others in support of its decision.
Capt. Chris Adams said the department’s decision is not a knock on rescue dogs. He said many department employees have “shelter dogs that turn out to be great pets.”
He said the department bought Maverick from a breeder to minimize the risk the dog could bite or injure someone and open the city to a lawsuit or claim against it. Adams said buying from a breeder let the department learn about the dog’s family history, including its temperament, behavior and health.
“We want to be confident that when we get a dog that is bred to be a pet or part of the family, we did everything we could to mitigate that risk,” he said. Maverick not only will be the department’s wellness support dog but will meet the public at community events.
The total cost for Maverick will be about $6,900, with the money coming from a $127,779 state wellness grant the department received in December 2022.
The Police Department bought Maverick from Oakdale-based IKAdoodles for $3,000 and is paying the business an additional $1,200 for a month’s training and boarding. The department expects to have another $2,700 in costs before Maverick makes his debut, which is expected in mid-June.
Those costs include more training for Maverick and the department employee assigned to him, as well as vaccinations, neutering, crate and harness. Adams said the department is considering pairing Maverick with a community service officer, who would take the dog home at night.
Fire Department adopts dog
The Police Department’s decision comes as the Stanislaus Animal Services Agency shelter continues to run at beyond its capacity.
Animal Services Director Vaughn Maurice declined to weigh in on whether the police should have adopted one of his agency’s dogs, but he pointed to a couple of examples when asked about other organizations adopting rescue dogs for similar reasons.
He said the Burbank Paradise Fire District in December adopted Rosco, a 5-month-old hound mix from Animal Services.
The west Modesto department — which has one fire station and is operated by paid firefighters and volunteers — said in a Facebook post that Rosco would be “a cherished member of both our family and fire department, contributing to community service, and personnel therapy. Feel free to drop by the firehouse and welcome your district’s new four legged member ... .”
Burbank Paradise Chief Peter Golling could not be reached by deadline Monday for an update on Rosco, though the department has featured him in several Facebook posts.
Maurice said when he ran a shelter in Louisiana about 15 years ago, a nursing home adopted one of its dogs, a golden retriever named Lady. “Lady lived there eight or nine years,” Maurice said. “She did great. The only problem they had with Lady is every resident wanted to give her a snack. This dog became rather large.”
He said that in celebration of National Pet Week, adoptions at the shelter are half price through Saturday. The shelter has kennel space for 187 dogs but had 205 as of Monday.
Animal Services has transported 702 dogs to rescue groups and other shelters in the Western United States and Canada in the first four months of this year and adopted out 1,090 dogs in the same time period. “We are way overcrowded,” Maurice said. “We have plenty of dogs available for the local community.”
He said Animal Services has not had to euthanize any dogs for lack of kennel space so far this year. “We’ve been fortunate,” Maurice said. “Rescue groups have really helped us out.” He has said Animal Services may euthanize a handful of dogs annually because of a lack of space.
