BELLEVUE (NBC 26) — A Brown County Sheriff's Office K9 officer is transitioning to a new handler, despite calls for the dog to remain with its current partner, who is on leave.
- A petition and a non-profit say K9 Dorian should remain with Deputy Beau Berger
- As we reported Monday, the dog's health and Deputy Berger's employment status are at the center of the discussion
- A non-profit says it will pay Brown County $20,000 for a new K9 if Dorian can stay with Berger, claiming it will be a better investment if Dorian retires in the next few years
- Brown County Sheriff Todd Delain says the dog is not for sale and is critical in explosive detection and suspicious item response in Brown County
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
Deputy Beau Berger is on leave from the Brown County Sheriff's Office (multiple people say it's paternity leave), and now the Office has taken back his K9 partner, a 6-year-old Belgian Malinois named Dorian. Now, a nonprofit has offered to buy the dog back to keep it with his former handler, Deputy Berger. The Sheriff says it's not that simple — and that the dog belongs to the County.
Watch Bellevue neighborhood reporter Karl Winter's full story here:
As we reported Monday, Sheriff Todd Delain says Deputy Berger accepted a job with another agency, and that Dorian will continue to work with the Brown County bomb squad, detecting explosives.
Delain wrote in a letter Monday: "Brown County K9s are not for sale, will not be part of a new employment deal, and will always receive the best care and treatment from unbiased professionals."
Thousands signed a petition saying Berger should be able to keep Dorian — led by Donna Morgan, who runs a Janesville-based non-profit called 'Wisconsin Vest-a-Dog.'
"The Sheriff's position is that the dog is the property of the County and a working employee of the county. How would you respond to that?" NBC 26 asked.
"Well, that's true," Morgan said. "But even if he is their property, and he's a tool — supposedly, is how they talk about it — but he's not just a tool, and he has emotions and feelings and, you know, is a working dog and knows how to work with his handler. Every handler and their dog are different. The relationship is always a special bond, but how they work together is different."
Morgan and others at Monday's County Public Safety meeting were critical of the decision to transition Dorian to a new handler.
"That's not taking care of your animals, if you ask me," said Tim Newtols, a retired Brown County Sheriff's Office K9 handler.
"This decision feels, at best, misguided and at worst, punitive," said Kayla Jacobson, who says she knows the Berger family personally. "Especially troubling is that this, everything came at a time with Deputy Berger and his family were reportedly considering relocating."
Morgan wants to pay the County $20,000 dollars to train a new dog and give Dorian back to Deputy Berger.
"It's just financially better for the county, and we're offering that, and we would love to do it," Morgan said.
Sheriff Delain did not comment at the meeting, but in his letter Monday, declined the offer, writing:
"These are working dogs and are resources of the Brown County Sheriff's Office — and you, the taxpayers. They are not personally owned by the handlers."
He added, "Dorian is in his 'prime' and is expected to perform his duties proficiently for many years to come."
The Public Safety Committee did not discuss the matter or take action.
NBC 26 did speak briefly with Deputy Berger but he said he cannot comment on the situation, saying he's still employed with the Brown County Sheriff's Office. We also asked Sheriff Delain for additional comment, but he declined.
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