They came from near and far.
And when Vick, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Department K-9 wounded in a deadly standoff with police in Rittman on July 5, scampered out the door of the veterinarian hospital in Copley Township, dozens of officers burst into applause.
There was a fair number of barks of support, too, on July 7 from fellow K-9 officers watching from police cruisers lined up to escort Vick home to Wayne County.
Surgical veterinarian Sydney O’Neil said Vick, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, is one “lucky” pup.
Vick was wounded in the back in the shooting in Ritman that killed a Rittman police officer along with a mom and teenage daughter.
A standoff ensued and Vick and four other officers were struck.
The gunman took his own life.
O’Neill said Vick was struck by a bullet in his back − barely missing his spinal cord.
The decision was made to leave the shrapnel in place to avoid a risky surgery.
O’Neill said Vick should be able to return to duty in a couple weeks as long as the healing goes well and there are no complications.
“I truly believe he got very lucky,” she said.
O’Neill said it was heartwarming to see so many police officers gather outside of the Metropolitan Veterinary Hospital on South Cleveland-Massillon Road in Copley Township to help escort Vick back home where he will rest and heal.
Officers from as far away as Euclid and Ashland came to join a long caravan of police cruisers to make the drive from Copley to Wooster.
Cuyahoga Falls officer Perry Chronister said being a police officer is like being in a family that looks out for one another.
Amid the tragedy of losing a fellow officer from Rittman, Chronister said, it is great to hear the four other officers and the K-9 will make full recoveries.
“You have to find positive in the dark,” he said.
Barberton police officer Brandon Watson brought his K-9 partner ISO to show support for Vick.
“You don’t want this to happen to anyone,” Watson said. “If one of us is hurt − we all hurt.”
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Wounded Wayne County K-9 Vick gets hero’s welcome heading home
Reporting by Craig Webb, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Craig Webb, Akron Beacon Journal | USA TODAY Network
