The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is excited to announce K9 Dax was voted the K9s of Valor Foundation ‘K9 of the Year!’

K9 Dax and Deputy John Forlenza were among over 100 nominated for the K9s of Valor Foundation - K9 of the Year Award.  After being nominated, K9s of Valor Foundation selected the duo to be in the top-ten.  From there, Lake County and the Chicagoland region took over, to put them in first-place.  From January 27th until February 4th, K9 Dax received over 9,500 votes from the community.  

K9 Dax and Deputy Forlenza were nominated for their many successful tracks locating dangerous criminals and citizens in need of help.  A few of Dax’s top accomplishments include K9 Dax finding a missing suicidal woman in the woods on a cold, rainy day.  Locating a dangerous domestic violence suspect that forced his way into a home and then choked and battered a woman before she was able to escape.  In another case, K9 Dax was able to take down a robbery suspect even after the suspect punched K9 Dax.

Sheriff John Idleburg said, “Great things happen when there is a strong law-enforcement partnership with the community we serve, and this is a perfect example.  I couldn’t be prouder of K9 Dax and his partner Deputy Forlenza. Our four canine teams take great pride in serving the Lake County community.  From finding missing endangered people or fleeing offenders to showing off their skills at community events, I’m convinced our four canine teams are among the best in the nation.  The Lake County Sheriff’s Office thanks Lake County and the Chicagoland community for voting K9 Dax as K9 of the Year!”  

More information about the K9s of Valor organization can be found at: https://www.k9sofvalor.org/