Police K-9 Krush retires for a life of fun and leisure

All photos by Larry Felton Johnson

By Larry Felton Johnson

We all deserve a chance to retire after a life of nose to the grindstone, even if that nose is occupied with sniffing out illegal substances.

Yesterday at the Cobb County Adult Detention Center, the retirement of long-time police dog K-9 Krush was celebrated.

In the press release distributed before the event, his future life in retirement was described as follows:

In retirement, K-9 Krush will live with retired Sgt. Kite, enjoying walks, swimming in the lake, and road trips. He’ll also have plenty of time to play fetch and receive the pets he loves so much.

The retirement ceremony, held in a room filled with Sheriff’s Office leadership, deputies, and other personnel, included an emotional reunion with Krush’s former handler, retired Sgt. Ronnie Kite. The enthusiastic doggy entered a joyful frenzy when his former handler approached him. Many of the photos in the galleries at the bottom of the article, taken from the same vantage point, show just how excited and animated K-9 Krush became when reintroduced to his old friend and partner.

Now that he’s retired, Krush will live a life of fun and leisure with Sgt. Kite.

The ceremony began with a few introductory words from Sheriff Craig Owens, who then turned the microphone over to Assistant Chief Deputy Gina Hawkins, who described Krush’s training and accomplishments.

“K-9 Krush is a nine-and-a-half-year-old black labrador retriever who was trained by US K-9 Unlimited in narcotics detection,” Hawkins said.

She said that after a six-week course and certification, K-9 Krush was assigned to Sgt. Kite in the MCS (Marietta, Cobb, Smyrna) narcotics unit for seven years.

In November of 2021, Krush was reassigned to the Cobb County Sheriff Office’s K-9 Unit until his retirement.

“During his career,” Hawkins said, “he conducted hundreds of drug inspections.”

His largest seizure, according to Hawkins, was 17 kilos of heroin. Krush is credited with seizing a total street value of $4.5 million in drugs and cash.

“We would like to take this time to personally thank K-9 Crush for his dedication to the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office, MCS, and, most importantly, the citizens of Cobb County,” Hawkins said. “We wish him a happy and long retirement.”