WILMINGTON, NC—The I&I International K9 Search and Rescue Team’s K9, Jorga, received a ballistic vest thanks to a nationwide Groupon event that raised over $335,000.00.
K9 Jorga, a Dutch shepherd, is certified in live search, building search, evidence/article search, area search and human decomposition odor detection. She is able to locate a single drop of blood on a hidden gauze pad, smell teeth buried 6 feet under the ground, and she can locate submerged remains.
"K9 Jorga is one of a kind. She has tracked down a criminal in the woods and 30 minutes later was teaching a daycare class about Working K9’s, what they do and how to interact with them. K9 Jorga can go from starting a live search to finding evidence along that search should it be needed, to changing to a recovering if we find that's the case," said handler Randy Searls.
The “Occasions ” campaign for Groupon Grassroots to outfit police K9’s with bullet and stab protective vests ran from February 15th through March 5th at 11:59 p.m. Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. was the nationwide non-profit organization and charity partner selected by Groupon Grassroots to participate.
The online $10 donation suggested interested persons purchase a Groupon, a tax deductible donation, through the secure website where all funds were allocated to purchase ballistic vests for the dogs.
In 2013, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. partnered with Groupon and was named as one of “The Best of 2013” campaigns. The nonprofit organization raised $155,537.33 in just one week, which provided ballistic vests for 163 law enforcement dogs in 30 states.
There are an estimated 30,000 police dogs throughout the United States.
To donate to the The I&I International K9 Search and Rescue Team, click here.