The Rock Island Police Department is asking members of the community with help in naming its new K-9 officer.
The male, 14-month-old Belgian-Malinois and German Shepard mix is from Cedar Creek Kennels in Monmouth, Ill. The K-9 will replace former K-9 Sparky Jackson, who died unexpectedly after an emergency medical procedure in September 2023, according to a Thursday city release.
Sparky was a four-year-old Belgian Malinois and worked alongside his handler, Officer Alex Bowman, since March 2021. Sparky was responsible for finding controlled substances, firearms and suspects, as well as participating in numerous search warrants and K-9 demonstrations.
An anonymous donor and supporter of K-9 programs stepped forward and generously contributed $10,000 toward the purchase and training of a new police dog for the department.
Officer Bowman will again serve as K-9 handler and will go through 10 weeks of training with the dog, also at Cedar Creek Kennels.
The K-9 must be named prior to training, which begins at the end of March, the city said. Name suggestions must be submitted on the Facebook pages for the police department and the city in the comment sections of the posts about the contest.
Names will be accepted until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 6. Police department personnel will vote on the winning name, which will be revealed during the March 11 City Council meeting.
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