By Kate Linderman
The Charlotte Observer
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — A police dog was stabbed several times in the throat while protecting police and bystanders from a man armed with a box cutter, Michigan cops said.
The 4-year-old Dutch shepherd named Sledge was immediately taken to an animal hospital and ultimately survived the injuries, police said. He lost about 40% of his blood in the process.
Sledge was later able to walk out of the hospital “on his own four legs” and reunite with his K-9 handler, Kalamazoo Public Safety said in a Feb. 7 Facebook post.
Officers arrived at the scene the evening of Feb. 6 to find a 49-year-old man armed with a knife threatening to stab people, authorities said. Police say the man on a porch threatened to kill the officers and refused to drop the box cutter.
When Sledge and his handler arrived, the man advanced toward the two, police said. Sledge was released to contain the man.
“K9 Sledge was deployed to protect the lives of officers on scene and the citizens that were just assaulted,” Kalamazoo Public Safety said.
He survived the stab to the jugular vein and blood loss, and he is expected to make a full recovery, police said.
The man was taken to Kern County jail after he was treated for injuries to his arm caused by Sledge, Michigan cops said. He faces “numerous felonies related to the initial attack, and the attack on the police K9,” police said.
Kalamazoo is about 140 miles west of Detroit.
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