MODESTO, Calif. (WSVN) — One city in California is making the grieving process just a little easier for the family of a fallen officer.
Modesto Police Sgt. Mike Pershall, 38, died in August after a drunk driver plowed into him as he was riding his bicycle, Fox 40 reports.
Pershall had just been promoted to sergeant two weeks before his death, and had been partnered with his K9, Ike, for two years. The two became affectionately known as “Mike and Ike.”
The 3-year-old Belgian Malinois cost the city $9,137. But for Pershall’s wife and two children, Ike was a priceless member of their family.
Modesto City Council decides 2mrw if K9 Ike will be able to retire and remain with Pershall family following Sgt. Pershall's passing @FOX40 pic.twitter.com/Kifj41aLrV
— Kenneth Mashinchi (@KMashinchi) October 2, 2017
Most police dogs work until the ages of 8 to 10. But in the wake of Pershall’s death, Police Chief Galen Carroll asked the city council to consider giving Ike to the family.
“It is not a good deal for the Police Department to lose the dog,” Carroll told the Modesto Bee. “But there is also the human factor of, you have a wife and two kids who just lost their dad, and that’s the family dog. What is the right thing to do?”
The city council agreed, voting 7-0 to sell Ike to the only family he’s ever known for $1, a common practice for dogs that are retired from police service.
Daniel Starr, president of the Modesto Police Canine Association, applauded the city’s decision.
“We spend more time with our dogs then we do our spouses, our children. We have a very unique relationship with our dogs that most people will not understand,” Starr said, adding that K9 dogs truly become a part of an officer’s family.
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