Last Call for Chicago PD Explosives Dog
December 20, 2016 1:59 PM   Subscribe

Chicago Cops Honor Dying Police Dog With Touching Last Call In her lifetime, the dog had protected the president, first lady and foreign dignitaries, reported the Chicago Tribune, which also has audio of the touching last call. “All units standby,” a dispatcher said Sunday. “7323 canine Rachel. 7323 canine Rachel. No response for canine Rachel. This is a final call for Chicago Police Explosives canine Rachel.” She was put down 15 minutes later. Officer Charles Kocanda had trained Rachel. “Our condolences go out to her handler, Officer Chuck Kocanda, who worked with her daily to make sure she was the best she could be,” the police department said in its Facebook post.
posted by Man with Lantern (37 comments total) 11 users marked this as a favorite
 
A dog will always love you more than they love themselves. Condolences to her handler, and a cold wet nose to working dogs everywhere.
ɷ
posted by Standeck at 2:07 PM on December 20, 2016 [12 favorites]


OMG why did I read this at work.
posted by hapax_legomenon at 2:07 PM on December 20, 2016 [5 favorites]


What the hell do you think you are doing, tear?
posted by sparklemotion at 2:14 PM on December 20, 2016 [1 favorite]


One of the great things here: using "her" rather than "its." Would that all articles about animals conferred them the simple dignity of not being described as inanimate objects.
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 2:20 PM on December 20, 2016 [20 favorites]


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posted by Songdog at 2:21 PM on December 20, 2016


"Are you crying?"
"No. Get out of my cube!"
posted by 80 Cats in a Dog Suit at 2:25 PM on December 20, 2016 [4 favorites]


Rest in peace, Rachel. Life well lived and job well done.

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posted by Silverstone at 2:26 PM on December 20, 2016 [1 favorite]


These are PR stories created by CPD to draw attention away from their ongoing murders of civilians and associated coverups.

But let's say you have genuine compassion for this police dog -- why not have compassion for these dogs, too?

Family gets $333,000 for 2009 raid in which cops killed dog

Chicago woman claims CPD officer had no reason to shoot, kill her dog

Lawsuit: Chicago Police Entered Family’s Home, Shot Their Dog, Won’t Explain Why
posted by scrod at 2:32 PM on December 20, 2016 [55 favorites]


no i can't watch this at work i will cry everywhere and i have a cold so there will be buckets and buckets of snot

oh great now i'm tearing up just thinking about the precious dog
posted by burgerrr at 2:33 PM on December 20, 2016 [3 favorites]


you can have compassion for all dogs, even ones used as tools of the fucked up police state or ones unjustly and cruelly executed by said police state
posted by burgerrr at 2:35 PM on December 20, 2016 [46 favorites]


Should this give me hope that the Chicago PD can show even a fraction of this respect and compassion for humans in their custody?

Earlier this year, a city investigative panel concluded that the Chicago PD had 'no regard for the sanctity of life when it comes to people of color'.

Look, I love dogs. I understand the bond between working dogs and their handlers. But a feel-good story about how well the Chicago PD treats its dogs can't cover for their institutional lack of regard for humans.
posted by grounded at 2:35 PM on December 20, 2016 [19 favorites]


But let's say you have genuine compassion for this police dog -- why not have compassion for these dogs, too?

I can't. I've spent my one compassion unit on this police dog and can't feel for any other dog or human anymore. I also wish I hadn't spent my lone attention unit on this police dog story and now can't also be concerned about the CPD's horrific treatment of civilians.
posted by Sangermaine at 2:36 PM on December 20, 2016 [56 favorites]


Damn it, just reading the above the fold is making me cry. Rest in peace, Rachel.

Gonna go love on my dog now.
posted by DingoMutt at 2:43 PM on December 20, 2016 [1 favorite]


They're all good dogs, scrod.
posted by The otter lady at 2:57 PM on December 20, 2016 [11 favorites]


Dogs are so good. So good! I'm going to love on my dog forever who is never ever going to die not ever la la la I'm not listening!
posted by corb at 2:57 PM on December 20, 2016 [6 favorites]


Relevant tweet: it's fucked up they make horses and dogs be cops
posted by Space Coyote at 3:03 PM on December 20, 2016 [7 favorites]


But a feel-good story about how well the Chicago PD treats its dogs can't cover for their institutional lack of regard for humans.

Does it have to? Or can it stand on its own, yet another star in the constellation of nuance created when nearly 12,000 human beings are given authority and tasked with the job of keeping the population safe, from members of the population?

If you have a story of Rachel ripping some innocent homeless dude's arm off, or information that Chuck Kocanda stands personally accused of racial bias, sexual harassment, or other abuse of power, I see how that would be useful context to share.

But, unless you want to live in a world without a police force, it would seem that shitting all over attempts to call out the good ones is a little counter-productive.
posted by sparklemotion at 3:24 PM on December 20, 2016 [15 favorites]


One of the dogs we run around with is a police Bloodhound in Anderson County, TN named Barnabas. After the Gatlinburg fires, Barnabas and his human-officer-friend spent nearly a week searching the ashes for human remains. I can't even imagine.

Police dogs lead lives that are pretty far removed from my life, and my dogs' lives.
posted by workerant at 3:26 PM on December 20, 2016 [6 favorites]


Good girl.
posted by Elly Vortex at 3:28 PM on December 20, 2016 [3 favorites]


Not all cops are bastards! RIP Rachel.
posted by AFABulous at 3:29 PM on December 20, 2016 [1 favorite]


i think you can love dogs and respect them and also dislike policing in this country, particular the racist terrible policing practiced by the CPD, and i also think that you should certainly be allowed call a police department racist and unjust even if there are a few "good" cops (whatever that's worth, if their "bad apple" colleagues are allowed to stick around). i'm just here for the good dogs
posted by burgerrr at 3:30 PM on December 20, 2016 [3 favorites]


I lost my very favorite dog last week unexpectedly. (She had a heart attack in the middle of the night at the vets office.)

So yeah, I cried. Still am. All dogs deserve better. My girl deserved to live longer. Bob and Rachel deserved to live longer and not be in danger. All the dogs that get shot by panicky officers, they deserved better too.

I'd personally pledge allegiance to all things Trump if I could have my girl back. I'm sure Rachel's partner would sacrifice a lot to have her back as well.
posted by drewbage1847 at 3:31 PM on December 20, 2016 [11 favorites]


Having compassion for dogs means demanding - loudly - that police forces never again be allowed to use them. They are not suited well to police work, and they are very often mistreated and abused in these kinds of jobs. They deserve better.
posted by koeselitz at 3:34 PM on December 20, 2016 [1 favorite]


Wait guys I have a compromise position that will get us back to talking about good dogs.

ACAD - All Cops Are Dogs. This initiative replaces all Chicago PD with canine-only officers over the next five years. Police will be more responsive to the feelings of individuals, but may demand steak protectionism.
posted by corb at 3:36 PM on December 20, 2016 [7 favorites]


Bank robber to teller: Put the money in this bag!
*teller presses button*
*six shiba inu puppies charge through the door*
Bank robber falls to floor, dead from cute
posted by AFABulous at 3:42 PM on December 20, 2016 [18 favorites]


Having compassion for dogs means demanding - loudly - that police forces never again be allowed to use them. They are not suited well to police work, and they are very often mistreated and abused in these kinds of jobs. They deserve better.
posted by koeselitz


That's a whopper of a generalization. Barnabas is a police dog, and his human is a sworn officer. Barnabas finds people, alive or dead. Mostly he tracks seniors with dementia or young children who've wandered off, or locates drowning victims in the lakes. Rarely, he works a manhunt. He lives with his human partner and her husband (and a civilian dog-brother, Petey). Exactly what part of this is a Bloodhound unsuited for?
posted by workerant at 3:47 PM on December 20, 2016 [10 favorites]


.
posted by BoscosMom at 3:54 PM on December 20, 2016


Rest well, good dog.
posted by briank at 5:38 PM on December 20, 2016 [1 favorite]


Having compassion for dogs means demanding - loudly - that police forces never again be allowed to use them. They are not suited well to police work, and they are very often mistreated and abused in these kinds of jobs. They deserve better.

The very few police dogs I have encountered seemed extremely well taken care of to me. I'm sure there are still horror stories, and they have risky jobs and sometimes get hurt as a result, too, but I strongly doubt that this is a true statement these days.
posted by Dip Flash at 5:57 PM on December 20, 2016 [2 favorites]


. ❤️🐶
posted by MarvinTheCat at 6:00 PM on December 20, 2016


.
posted by danabanana at 6:02 PM on December 20, 2016


Dogs love to have jobs. They love doing a thing and getting praise for it. I got to watch some secret service dogs doing their thing checking various things backstage at a college graduation where the president was speaking. Those were some happy fucking dogs. They knew if they found the thing they'd get the toy, and they really wanted that toy.

I've lost two pets this year, so reading about good dogs getting put down after a good life just has me sniffly.
posted by rmd1023 at 7:13 PM on December 20, 2016 [15 favorites]


.
posted by fyrebelley at 10:48 PM on December 20, 2016


Having compassion for dogs means demanding - loudly - that police forces never again be allowed to use them. They are not suited well to police work, and they are very often mistreated and abused in these kinds of jobs. They deserve better.

That is ridiculous. I grew up with police dogs and I helped train police dogs. My father was a Maine Marine Patrol Canine unit. I've known lots of police dogs and handlers. Every one of those dogs was treated well and loved by their handlers. Rmd1023 above is absolutely right; dogs love to have jobs and every one of those dogs I knew, watched, and helped train obviously enjoyed the hell out of it.

Let's also remember that Rachel, the dog we're talking about here, was an explosives dog. No matter how you feel about the police, (and I'm not arguing with you there) finding hidden bombs is an important job that provides an overall good for everyone. It's a job that should be done, and one that dogs can do well.
posted by The Man from Lardfork at 5:33 AM on December 21, 2016 [8 favorites]


Sorry for stirring shit. Regardless of my political views, dogs are great creatures, and I think everybody agrees that we should honor that greatness.
posted by koeselitz at 8:49 AM on December 21, 2016 [1 favorite]


Dogs are literally the best thing humanity has had a hand in.
posted by drewbage1847 at 10:41 AM on December 21, 2016 [3 favorites]


You can sit, or play dead.
posted by The otter lady at 4:55 PM on December 22, 2016


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