Cape Girardeau Police Department announces new ‘Chief’
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KBSI) – The Cape Girardeau Police Department has a new community resource dog.
Public Information Officer Bobby Newton is the owner of Chief, the new fluffy friend to the officers within the department.
He is a three-month-old Goldendoodle born with a cleft lip.
“You know my son was also born with a cleft, so whenever we found Chief, we just had to take him in,”said Newton.
A cleft lip is where the lip has not formed properly, causing a slight gap between the mouth.
“My son has had several surgeries to repair that, but with Chief here, the vet says there’s no issues, so we’re not planning on having that fixed at all,” said Newton.
Chief of Police Wes Blair says the idea of a dog within headquarters was something he thought he would never see.
“I’ll be completely honest when I started my law enforcement career that’s not something I would have ever even fathomed would happen,” said Chief Blair.
Chief is a puppy, but there are many plans for his future.
He will become a community resource canine, with training to become a licensed therapy dog within the police department.
“Puppies bring a kind of sense of relaxation, anytime that you’re around one, you can kind of pet on the dog and love on the dog, and it kind of makes some of the bad things of the day that you face go away a little bit.”
But with the research that Officer Newton presented, and finding the right dog, the Cape Girardeau Police Department now has new responsibility.
Chief Blair isn’t taking the co-chief situation too hard.
“I actually think it’s great to have a coworker here who can help me to make some of the harder decisions that we face in the department,” he said.
