Full Notification

Corona Police Department’s K9 Claud will receive a bullet and stab protective vest thanks to a charitable donation from non-profit organization Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. K9 Claud’s vest is sponsored by the Hausman Family Foundation of CA and will be embroidered with the sentiment “This gift of protection provided by the Hausman Family Foundation”. Final grant approval was made by City Council at the January 20, 2016 council meeting.

k9claudVested Interest in K9s, Inc. is a 501c (3) charity located in East Taunton, MA whose mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related agencies throughout the United States. The non-profit was established in 2009 to assist law enforcement agencies with this potentially lifesaving body armor for their four-legged K9 officers. Since its inception, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provided over 1,600 protective vests, in 49 states, through private and corporate donations, at a cost of over 1.5 million dollars. All vests are custom made in the USA by Armor Express in Central Lake, MI.

The program is open to dogs actively employed in the U.S. with law enforcement or related agencies who are certified and at least 20 months of age. New K9 graduates, as well as K9s with expired vests, are eligible to participate.

The suggested donation to provide one protective vest for law enforcement K9 is $1,050.00. Each vest has a value between $1,795 to $2,234 and a five-year warranty, and an average weight of 4-5 pounds. There is an estimated 30,000 law enforcement K9s throughout the United States. For more information or to learn about volunteer opportunities, please call 508-824-6978. Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provides information, lists events, and accepts tax-deductible donations of any denomination online or mailed to P.O. Box 9 East Taunton, MA

K9 Claud is a 3 year old Belgian Malinois and he is certified in patrol work and is assigned to Officer Carlos Gutierrez. K9 Claud was born in the Netherlands on June 2012 and purchased from Adlerhorst International, located in Riverside, CA. K9 Claud became a member of the Corona Police Department in September 2015. The team began their training in September 2015 and completed 240 hours of basic handler course and are certified as a Police Service Dog Team as of October 2015.