Florida bill aims to protect injured police K-9s

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iStock.com/@vedrana2701 New legislation pushed by the Florida Attorney General and law enforcement aims to protect police K-9s injured in the line of duty. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, along with dozens of law enforcement officers, gathered in Volusia County to support the bills intended to protect police dogs. Currently, paramedics are not allowed to transport injured K-9s. Moody told Fox 35 News, “House Bill 697 and Senate Bill 388 will authorize first responders to provide life-saving care and transportation to police K-9s injured in the line of duty, so long as people at the scene are not injured and need medical attention.” The bills echo similar Rhode Island legislation introduced in 2020, which would allow paramedics to transport injured K-9s by ambulance to a veterinary hospital. The Rhode Island bill also allows K-9s to receive life-saving emergency services from EMTs, including “mouth-to-snout resuscitation,” giving oxygen, stopping blood loss, and treating overdoses.  Moody said that 130 K-9s were injured in the line of duty last year, which prompted consideration of the bill. Senator Tom Wright, who is sponsoring the bill, said “When that K-9 is hurt, it should be our duty as a state to make absolutely certain that we have tried absolutely everything in our power to save our four-legged officer friend.”  The bill will be one of the first introduced in the Florida Senate for the 2021 session. The post Florida bill aims to protect injured police K-9s appeared first on American Police Beat Magazine.