Pepper, the black Belgian Malinois who has faithfully served the Sapulpa Police Department since March of 2021, has retired, according to her owner, Cady Byrnes.
Pepper, who has reached the age of nine, is still spry but is reaching the appropriate retirement age for K9 Officers. She first joined the department when she was just four years old, becoming only the second K9 officer for the SPD.
“She brought a whole new way for the Sapulpa police department to interact with the entire city,” Byrnes said. “From K9 demonstrations, birthday parties, lemonade stands, Christmas events … school interactions and much more.”
One of those events, a lemonade stand by Avery Lemmon, made the Sapulpa Times when she raised nearly $500 in just one day of selling “Avery’s Lemmonade for Sapulpa Police Puppies.”
Pepper also became the face of the K9 department, as her friendliness with people meant she could attend and interact with fundraisers that became critical for fully funding the K9 division at the Sapulpa Police Department. Last year, Pepper was present when Friends of the Sapulpa Police K9s were awarded a check for over $11,000 in a fundraiser that lasted just six hours.
“The Sapulpa Chamber of Commerce has estimated she has helped to raise an astounding $60,000 since (the non-profit) was established to fund the K9 division,” Byrnes said. “The community relationship she built helped to support the purchase of K9 equipment, medical bills, and routine maintenance.” Pepper also made friends with individuals at Lowe’s in Tulsa Hills, who donated the materials, man-hours, and delivered a K9 agility course worth approximately $4,500.
Although Pepper made a considerable impact through community engagement, she was also a true police dog, though not the kind that chases down running suspects. Still, Pepper assisted in over 60 drug-related arrests, as well as tracking burglars and recovering evidence and stolen property.
A formal retirement sendoff was held at this year’s Route 66 Blowout so that Pepper could see the community she served one last time before hanging up her badge for good. Byrnes says we haven’t seen the last of Pepper, however. “We’ll still bring her to a Free Coffee Friday so (everyone) can see her. We loved those Free Coffee Fridays!”
