Pocono News Section

K-9s Cut from Bloomsburg Police Force

K-9s Cut from Bloomsburg Police Force - Wednesday, January 7, 2009 at 6:44PM EST

Reported by: Kyla Campbell
Wednesday, Jan 7, 2009 @ 06:44pm EST

BLOOMSBURG, COLUMBIA COUNTY -- Artur lost his job with the Bloomsburg Police Department after more than six years on the job, but he and two of his co-workers won't be getting any unemployment.

Artur is one of three K-9s cut from the police department here after the town faced a budget deficit heading into 2009. Bloomsburg Town Council voted to cut the three dogs, rather than a human officer.

"The economy is tough everywhere," said Sgt. Roger Van Loan, Artur's partner. "They had to make cuts where they had to make cuts."

It costs about $13,000 a year to train those dogs and pay the officers who take them home at night. Now, Van Loan and the other dogs' partners are adopting them. That means they're taking on the food and veterinarian bills as well.

"When the dogs were with the department, food and veterinarian care were donated," said Van Loan, who hopes the community might step up and make donations.

Like Van Loan, Mayor Dan Knorr and Police Chief Leo Sokoloski are hopeful people consider making donations to get the K-9s back on the force.

"I've had the dogs as my partner for more than 11 years now," added Van Loan. "It's going to be really hard for me to work without them and for them to not work."

The three dogs sniff for drugs, bombs, and missing people, something Van Loan says Bloomsburg needs.

"Now, we'll have to call to nearby municipalities to see if they could bring one in," said Van Loan. "That could mean at least an hour or two wait."

If you'd like to donate to bring the K-9 force back to Bloomsburg, you can call the station at 784-6779.

"If we could find a way to bring them back," said Van Loan, "that would be amazing."