Elgin police K9 officer Gage’s tail wagged as he made his way around the room to congratulatory pats on the head and a round of applause from a group of Elgin residents for his 11 1/2 years of service.
The Deutsch Drahthaar, or German Wirehaired Pointer, is marking two milestones this week, he’s turning 13 and is retiring from the police force.
Gage joined the force in September 2005, his handler, Elgin Officer Marshall Kite said. The German Wirehaired Pointer is a hunting dog, a breed that also makes a good K9, he said.
K9 officers typically spend seven to eight years in active duty and Gage exceeded that, Kite said.
“Obviously, the department has taken good care of him,” Kite said.
During his career, Gage worked on some major cases including one with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to seize between 30 and 40 firearms. Kite estimates Gage has helped seize $4 to $5 million in drugs over the years.
“He’s done so many good things,” Elgin Police Commander Ana Lalley said.
What Gage and Kite have enjoyed most is doing demonstrations for children, Kite said. Children often ask a lot of questions. One child ask if the department had any police cats, he said. “He suggested the name Officer Mittens if we ever get a police cat,” Kite said.
Gage was trained as a tracker and trained to ignore other dogs and people so he sometimes seemed aloof when meeting the public, Kite said. But, judging by how much he wagged his tail, he also enjoyed it, he said.
“He loves the attention,” Kite said.
The breed is a working dog and it is going to be an adjustment for Gage not to go to work every day, Kite said.
“It is very difficult for police dogs to transition” to retirement, he said. “They like to work.”
Kite’s family is going to be giving him a lot of attention while Kite is at work and it will be hard for Gage not to be around him all the time, he said. But, it was time for him to retire, Kite said. He could tell Gage was slowing down a bit, he said.
The department defers to the trainer to decide when it is time to retire their K9, Lalley said.
Gage will also have to adjust to a new sister, a 16-month-old German Shepard who will become Kite’s new partner. Kite has already been training with the puppy at Tops Kennel in Grayslake. She will join the police department in June.
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
