PETA Demands Grand Rapids Police Retire K-9 Unit After Dog Is Stabbed

People for the ethical treatment of animals, also known as PETA, has reached out to the Grand Rapids Police Department to ask them to retire their K-9 program.

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The request comes after a K-9 dog named Digo was recently stabbed while trying to subdue a suspect.

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On Saturday, May 30 Grand Rapids police officers responded to a report that a man threatened family members with a knife.

In video released by GRPD you can see the man came out of a house and threw a lit Molotov cocktail at police, which set a patrol car on fire.

The man continued running from police and tried to carjack a woman at knifepoint, but was unsuccessful.

The chase came to an end after GRPD released Digo to try and subdue the man, who stabbed the dog, was fatally shot after charging at officers with a knife.

What Would Replace K-9's

In the letter PETA sent to Interim GRPD Chief Joe Trigg they suggested the department use drones or robots to deal with suspects instead of putting dogs at risk for injury or death.

I don't see that request happening anytime soon, but who knows, with advances in A.I. and robotics I could see the day where robotic dogs are used to fight crime but for now I don't think that will be happening.

K-9 Digo is expected to recover from being stabbed, but it's unknown yet if he will return to work with the department or will be retired.

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