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K-9 Union and K-9 Arek received the custom vests Wednesday, Feb. 17, after Vested Interest in K-9s, Inc. was provided $2,100 in donations, according to a statement from state police.
Union is a 3-year-old German shepherd who has been assigned to Trooper Christopher Porrini for two years and currently works at Troop A, which serves Southbury, Bethel, Brookfield, Danbury, New Fairfield, Newtown, Redding, Ridgefield and Sherman.
According to police, he is trained in all patrol functions, including tracking, building search, evidence recovery, narcotics detection, apprehension, obstacles and obedience.
Arek is a 4-year-old German shepherd with the same training as Union. For the past two years, he has been assigned to Trooper Matthew Herz and working at Troop H in Hartford, police said.
Vested Interest is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization established in 2009 and based in East Taunton, Mass. According to a statement, its mission is "to provide bullet- and stab-protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related angencies throughout the United States."
Over more than six years, Vested Interest has provided more than 1,700 protective vests for K-9s in 49 states using private donations totaling more than $1.6 million.
Each vest provided by the group is custom made by Armor Express, an American company based in Central Lake, Mich.
The Vested Interest program is open to dogs that are certfied, at least 20 months old and actively employed with a U.S. law enforcement or related agency. The program is open to both new K-9 graduates and older animals.
For more information, or to learn about volunteer opportunities, please call 508-824-6978.Donations to Vested Interest can be made online or through mail: P.O. Box 9 East Taunton, MA 02718.
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