10-year-old Kane, the Horry County Sheriff’s Office’s first K-9 officer, was put down today after a terminal cancer diagnosis.
Cpl. Misty Puckett, Kane’s handler, partner-against-crime and “mama,” as she refers to herself, said that Kane’s illness came on quickly and that she knows putting him down was the right thing to do.
“He was super friendly to anyone that was around, but if someone messed with mama, there was hell to be had,” Puckett said.
Kane was a German Shepherd. While regal, adorable and quite huggable-looking, Kane was a working dog intent on sniffing out narcotics and protecting Puckett. Sheriff Phillip Thompson said that Kane loved his job.
“He was just such a pleasure to be with and he worked hard. He loved the work. He looked forward every day to getting into the field. We utilize them a lot in schools and he’s good with kids. I don’t know who enjoyed it more, the kids or Kane,” Thompson said. “When he came into the office, we were excited to see him and he would visit each person. He would bring you the ball, you’d throw it and he’d bring it back.”
Kane was sworn in by Thompson in 2015 when he was three years old. Kane then retired in December of 2021.
“His liberties grew significantly after he retired,” Puckett said. “We were very strict on what he was allowed to do because he was a work dog, but once he retired, all of those kinds of things went out the window and he became a couch dog.”
According to Thompson, Kane was the sheriff’s office’s first K-9 officer.
“Like so many of our officers, Kane retired with more gray hairs than he started with,” Brennan Cavanagh, public information officer for the Horry County Sheriff’s Office, said.
Kane and his mama were escorted by fellow officers to Murrells Inlet Veterinary Hospital at about noon today. From there, they went to Burroughs Funeral Home.
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