Oklahoma City Police Department Pay Tribute To Fallen K-9 Officer .....

Look closely at the picture on the left and specifically what’s inside that coffin. 
That’s not the body of a person
That’s the body of a dog.

Kye was a 3-year-old Belgian German Shepard.
He worked as a K-9 with the Oklahoma City Police Department.

Kye was killed in the line of duty last month.
And was just given a full police burial.
The service included full police honors and a 21-gun salute. 

Kye worked with Sgt. Ryan Stark.
That’s Sgt. Stark bending over to kiss Kye.
(Honestly just looking at that picture gets me choked up)

They had been partners and friends for two years.
The second picture is Sgt Stark holding the folded American Flag that had draped Kye’s coffin.
You can see Sgt. Stark wiping away tears. 

Kye was chasing a suspect when he was stabbed.
Sgt. Stark then shot and killed the suspect.
Kye died the next day in surgery.

During the eulogy for Kye an officer said:
"Without question, Kye's sacrifice saved the life of one of our officers. We will forever remain in your debt."

The bond between officers and their K-9’s is amazing to me.
When an officer if paired with a K-9 it is intended to be a lifetime partnership. They trust each other completely.

I read these quotes from former K-9 officers:

"You spend all those hours training together, working together, in the car together. He's never in a bad mood because he had a fight with his girlfriend."

“They are part of you. If you’re sleeping, they’re probably right next to your bed."

"There is more of a bond there than just being partners. Everyday when I get ready, he gets ready. He sees me getting ready and he knows it. He's excited to get out there to do the job" 

"You might have had a bad day at work or a bad day with the family, but as soon as you see that dog, you see that unconditional love.
All of the sudden you just forget about that bad day and think, 'Here's my partner, here's my buddy right here.
No matter what happens, he always loves me.' "

Rest in peace Kye.