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For Immediate Release:
April 22, 2026<\/p>\n
Contact:
Sara Groves 202-483-7383\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\tFort Lauderdale, Fla. \u2013 <\/p>\n
Following reports that a K-9 named Appie was shot by a burglary suspect on Saturday, PETA sent a letter today to Fort Lauderdale Police Chief William Schultz, urging him to retire Appie\u2014and for the use of police dogs to be phased out altogether. In the letter, PETA encourages the department to replace K\u20119s with state-of-the-art policing technology, such as tactical robots, drones, and\/or portable mass spectrometers. Several departments across the country use tactical robots, which can be deployed in situations that could otherwise result in serious injury or death for K-9s and human officers.<\/p>\n
\u201cPolice officers willingly take on the daily risks of their duties, but dogs like Appie don\u2019t get to choose,\u201d says PETA Senior Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch. \u201cAppie suffered a violent attack and PETA is urging the Fort Lauderdale Police Department to retire him immediately and take the opportunity to reassess its use of dogs and forcing them into life-threatening situations.\u201d<\/p>\n
PETA\u2014whose motto reads, in part, that \u201canimals are not ours to abuse in any way\u201d\u2014points out that Every Animal Is Someone<\/a>\u00a0and offers free\u00a0Empathy Kits<\/a>\u00a0for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit\u00a0PETA.org<\/a>\u00a0or follow PETA on\u00a0X<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>, or\u00a0Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n PETA\u2019s letter to Schultz follows.<\/p>\n April 22, 2026<\/p>\n William C. Schultz<\/p>\n Chief of Police<\/p>\n Via e-mail<\/p>\n Dear Chief Schultz:<\/p>\n I hope this message finds you well. I\u2019m writing on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) regarding K-9 Appie, who was injured during a suspect pursuit. We understand that many K-9s are regarded as colleagues and members of their handlers\u2019 families, and we wish him a speedy recovery.\u00a0Given this incident,\u00a0would you please retire Appie and consider this an opportunity to reassess the use of dogs?<\/p>\n Appie is not the only K-9 who has been injured in the line of duty, but he\u2019s among the few who have survived.\u00a0K-9 Sheik<\/a>\u00a0of the Wheeling Police Department in West Virginia recently died after she was struck by a car. A few months before Sheik died,\u00a0K-9 Spike<\/a>\u00a0of the Burbank Police Department in California was fatally shot while pursuing a suspect who\u2019d fled from a traffic stop. Earlier in the year,\u00a0K-9 Rebel<\/a>\u00a0of the Albuquerque Police Department in New Mexico was shot during a suspect pursuit and died a short time later at an emergency veterinary clinic.\u00a0K-9 Azi<\/a>\u00a0of the McKinney Police Department in Texas was fatally injured during an \u201cexchange of gunfire\u201d between officers and a suspect. There certainly have been more fatal assaults against K-9s that weren\u2019t reported publicly.<\/p>\n Unlike their human counterparts, K-9s do not sign up to risk their lives. They are loyal and protective, but they cannot consent to be used in violent encounters they did not cause or escalate. Veterinary\u00a0experts<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0U.S. military<\/a>\u00a0recognize that dogs like Appie, in addition to suffering the immediate physical pain and other effects of life-threatening injuries, can experience fear and anxiety from\u00a0post-traumatic stress<\/a>\u00a0for the rest of their lives.<\/p>\n Will you please plan now to use state-of-the-art technology, such as\u00a0tactical robots<\/a>,\u00a0drones<\/a>, or\u00a0portable mass spectrometers<\/a>, which enhance safety and operational efficiency without risking anyone\u2019s life, once your current K-9s have been retired? Your department may be able to secure grant funding for new technology through the\u00a0Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Grant Program<\/a>, the\u00a0DOJ Office of Community Oriented Policing Services<\/a>\u00a0(COPS), and the\u00a0Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant<\/a>\u00a0(JAG) Program. You might also find private or equipment-specific grant funding opportunities through\u00a0PoliceGrantsHelp.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n Thank you for your consideration and for all that you do to keep your community safe.<\/p>\n Most respectfully,<\/p>\n Allison Fandl<\/p>\n Manager of Special Projects<\/p>\n Cruelty Investigations Department | PETA<\/p>\n \t