GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The Grand Rapids Police Department needs your support.
GRPD is partnering with a nonprofit, 30X30 Fundraising, to raise money to buy bulletproof vests for eight of its K9s.
“They're great partners. They're a lot of fun, but they're still an animal, so the training is a lot of fun with them, but we got to put a lot of time in to make sure that they do what we need them to do," said GRPD Sgt. Justin Kribs.
He said the dogs are used a lot in dangerous situations, which is why they need a Kevlar vest.
“The whole point of the dogs is to keep our officers safe, the public safe, even the suspects safe. And with that, this is just another tool that we can equip the dogs with to help them do their job for us a little bit safer," Kribs said. ”We had a different set of vests for a lot of the older dogs, but they were very big, very bulky and had to get returned when the dogs retired.”
Just one of these custom-made K9 storm vests that defend against bullets, knives and other hazards costs more than $3,700.
“These are from the neck, actually cover the underbelly, quite a bit down, like around the rib cage, kind of, like what our vest cover for us, like all the vital organs," Kribs said.
In case you’re wondering why the police department is using 30X30 fundraising, it’s because the nonprofit can purchase the vests at a discount, saving the department and taxpayers a lot of money.
"This is a huge help to not put a strain on those budgets so that everybody everywhere can get the equipment that they need," Kribs said.
If you’re interested in helping, you can address checks to 30X30 fundraising.
You can also make a donation online.
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