The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office is seeking votes to help win a grant that will provide funds for the Sheriff’s K-9 Unit.
The Aftermath K-9 Grant is awarding a total of $16,500 to the top eight law-enforcement agencies in the country that receive the most votes to further establish their K-9 Units or to create new ones. The top recipient will receive $5,000.
From Oct. 18 through Nov. 2, community members can vote once every 12 hours for the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s K-9 Unit on the Aftermath K-9 Grant website www.aftermath.com/k9-grant, and once daily on Instagram @AftermathK9Grant.
The Sheriff’s Office hopes to rally enough votes to win the contest and put the funding toward the ongoing costs necessary to keep its K-9 Unit going.
The Sheriff’s Office canines provide a critical crime-fighting tool for Santa Barbara County. There are currently three German shepherds assigned to patrol operations and a new labrador jail narcotics K-9.
Three of the canines are narcotics detection-trained and one is trained for bomb/explosive detection.
There are numerous costs associated with having a successful K-9 Unit from the purchase of the dogs, to the ongoing specialty training, veterinary costs, food, and equipment.
The program is funded predominantly by donations and has been supported by the Sheriff’s Benevolent Posse and its Project Deputy Dog program.
The Aftermath K-9 Grant was founded to showcase, support and reward the contributions made by law enforcement and their K9 units across the country.
— Kelly Hoover for Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office.