April 22, 2024 By Carol Britton Meyer

The Cohasset Police Department is mourning the loss of retired K-9 Erik, the town’s first police dog — who passed away recently following a brief illness — while also celebrating his life and service to the community.

The beloved German Shepherd — who would have soon reached his 14th birthday — joined the CPD in 2011 and immediately bonded with his best friend and handler, CPD Officer Patrick Reardon, and his family.  “Through the amazing support of  The Cohasset Working Dog Foundation, the residents of Cohasset and beyond, and our political leadership, we have been able to sustain a K-9 program that is truly something to be proud of,” Chief William Quigley said in a press release.

Over the past four years, Erik has been living “his best-retired life: no shift work, holidays off, zero bad guys, and plenty of ‘boops,'” according to the chief. “Our love and thanks go out to the Reardons for allowing us into their home with Erik. K-9 Einstein has the watch now.”

The mission of the Cohasset Police -K-9 Unit is to provide well-trained police canine assistance to patrol officers in the field for the prevention and detection of crimes, including the location of suspects as well as missing or endangered individuals in the community.

The K-9 unit also strives to promote a favorable public image of the police department through community outreach.

The Cohasset Police K-9 unit is primarily funded by The Cohasset Working Dog Foundation, which was founded in 2011 in order to raise funds to start the program in town.

Its mission is to support the program and to provide grants in the community toward the purchase and training of service dogs to support people with disabilities.  CWDF also funds the training of therapy dogs who visit hospitals, nursing homes, libraries, and schools.