Police Dog Services member 'Arrow' (Regimental) #962 with handler Cpl. James McCarthy of Red Deer RCMP. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

ensuring a good life for really good dogs

Retired police and military dogs receiving help from Ned’s Wish

Jul 16, 2022 | 1:02 PM

An organization with strong ties to Red Deer, and which helps Canada’s retired police and military dogs, was the beneficiary of a pancake breakfast and raffle fundraiser Saturday morning.

Ned’s Wish was founded following the death of Ned, a police dog, who served part of his career with Red Deer RCMP, alongside handler Cpl. Phil Graham. Ned, whose resumé is long, wound up with Stacey Talbot for five years in retirement.

Talbot, also an officer in Red Deer from 2002-2007, thought up the organization when there were hefty medical bills prior to his passing.

Ned’s Wish will receive a few thousand dollars from Saturday’s event, which was hosted by F45 gym at the new Notre Dame Plaza. In addition to food and mingling, RCMP officers were on hand with active Police Dog Services canines doing demos.

The event came about as part of F45’s quarterly fitness fundraiser, in which the gym’s different locations internationally select local charities or causes to benefit.

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Tracy Peters, F45 South Red Deer owner, says the gym has close to a dozen active members who often attend with their faithful and furry friends. This is why Ned’s Wish, which covers medical bills of ex-police and ex-military dogs, is close to her heart.

“These dogs help our community in so many ways, from catching the bad guys to helping find children, and generally protecting officers in dangerous situations. They have such an important role, which is why when they’re older, they need special care,” said Peters.

“To bring awareness to Ned’s Wish is an amazing opportunity. These dogs deserve a good retirement like all seniors do. They’ve been shot at, stabbed, and they put on a lot of miles tracking. They should have fun, good health care, be fed well, and ultimately rewarded for their service.”

That’s where Ned’s Wish comes in by providing that health care funding when the dogs leave service.

Talbot, the organization’s president since it launched in May 2019, says the dogs deserve to live as comfortably and as long of a retirement as possible.

“These dogs usually retire around seven or eight years of age, and are typically in our program until age 13 or so. Veterinary care and medicine has become so expensive, and these dogs aren’t really candidates for insurance because of their pre-existing issues,” says Talbot, explaining that some individual procedures these days cost upwards of $12,000.

“The dogs will either stay with their handlers in retirement, or a trusted family member or person who has the skill-set to look after these extremely highly-trained dogs.”

There are currently about 160 police service dogs across Canada, approximately 20 in Alberta, and four stationed in Red Deer.

Ned’s Wish has registered 129 dogs since launch three years ago.