DARLINGTON - It was May 25 and Lafayette County's canine officer, Cody, and his handler, Deputy Fred Norder, were on their seventh traffic stop of the day. Just as Norder hit his lights, a computer program in his squad malfunctioned, causing the doors to fly open on Wisconsin 151, just between Belmont and Platteville. As Cody is trained to do, he jumped out and was severely injured.
"I can't tell you how sick of a feeling it made me, when that door popped opened on a four lane highway at 55 mph," Norder said. "I immediately released the person I had been stopping, as Cody's safety and well-being were paramount at the time."
Norder rushed Cody to the Brodhead Veterinary Medical Center, where the dog was treated for severe abrasions and ruptured anal glands. Now Cody is finally healed, and eager to return to work. But first he needs the right equipment.
And that's where Donna Morgan comes in. She's founder of Wisconsin Vest-A-Dog, a Janesville-based, not-profit group dedicated to providing canine officers with bullet-proof vests for protection.
Her group gave Cody his old vest and is now raising money to provide him with a new one and to install new computer software for Norder's squad. Ironically, a program in Norder's squad designed to keep Cody safe - known as a bail-out program - is what caused the canine to be severely injured. If the handler is away from the vehicle for an extended amount of time, and temperatures are high, the windows roll down and the red and blue lights will light up to alert the handler of the temperature fluctuation, Norder said. Then, if the handler is not back right away, the doors open, allowing the dog to escape.
"The automatic door triggered when I activated my police radio microphone to call dispatch," Norder said. "It is believed the radio frequency interference was triggered by keying the microphone."
The program, which runs on analog frequency, has been in three squads since 2002, Norder said, and has been in the vehicle he has been driving since 2008. Morgan is hoping to raise enough money for a new canine deployment and heat alert system for Norder's cruiser.
The new program costs $969, Morgan said.
It will be the second time Morgan's group has helped the Lafayette County canine officer.
Cody was first "vested" by the organization in December 2010.
Norder said the department was grateful to the group for donating Cody's vest and for her efforts to raise money for the new software.
"We are not asking for a hand out," Norder said. "(Vest-A-Dog) approached us and said they would like to help."
The Lafayette County Sheriff's Department adopted Cody in 2009, after their very first canine officer, Riley, retired from the department.
Riley, who was adopted by Norder after his retirement, was put down in October 2010.
"I can't tell you how sick of a feeling it made me, when that door popped opened on a four lane highway at 55 mph," Norder said. "I immediately released the person I had been stopping, as Cody's safety and well-being were paramount at the time."
Norder rushed Cody to the Brodhead Veterinary Medical Center, where the dog was treated for severe abrasions and ruptured anal glands. Now Cody is finally healed, and eager to return to work. But first he needs the right equipment.
And that's where Donna Morgan comes in. She's founder of Wisconsin Vest-A-Dog, a Janesville-based, not-profit group dedicated to providing canine officers with bullet-proof vests for protection.
Her group gave Cody his old vest and is now raising money to provide him with a new one and to install new computer software for Norder's squad. Ironically, a program in Norder's squad designed to keep Cody safe - known as a bail-out program - is what caused the canine to be severely injured. If the handler is away from the vehicle for an extended amount of time, and temperatures are high, the windows roll down and the red and blue lights will light up to alert the handler of the temperature fluctuation, Norder said. Then, if the handler is not back right away, the doors open, allowing the dog to escape.
"The automatic door triggered when I activated my police radio microphone to call dispatch," Norder said. "It is believed the radio frequency interference was triggered by keying the microphone."
The program, which runs on analog frequency, has been in three squads since 2002, Norder said, and has been in the vehicle he has been driving since 2008. Morgan is hoping to raise enough money for a new canine deployment and heat alert system for Norder's cruiser.
The new program costs $969, Morgan said.
It will be the second time Morgan's group has helped the Lafayette County canine officer.
Cody was first "vested" by the organization in December 2010.
Norder said the department was grateful to the group for donating Cody's vest and for her efforts to raise money for the new software.
"We are not asking for a hand out," Norder said. "(Vest-A-Dog) approached us and said they would like to help."
The Lafayette County Sheriff's Department adopted Cody in 2009, after their very first canine officer, Riley, retired from the department.
Riley, who was adopted by Norder after his retirement, was put down in October 2010.