Buddy awarded for his bravery working with the West Rand K9 Unit
After many years of dedication, the four-legged hero was the first Border collie to receive this specific medal.
Beloved K9 Buddy received the South African Police Service Canine and Equine Star for Bravery award during a medal parade held on January 18.
His owner, Warrant Officer Bennie Wiese noted this was the first time in the police’s history that a Border collie received such an award.
He added Buddy’s career as a search and rescue animal started at the age of two when he was donated to the police. He did a narcotics course in 2017 after which he started working with Wiese at the West Rand K9 Unit.
• Also read: Beloved Buddy critical after CIT-related shootout
“Buddy is a detection dog or sniffer dog that is trained to use its senses to detect substances such as illegal drugs. They need to possess a good hunt, air scent, retrieve, and prey drive. Buddy excelled in all of those areas, as soon as he started working outside. Once he had the chance, he excelled in narcotics detection. The smell from sniffer dogs is more enhanced than the average dog. They are trained to have this great sense of smell. Buddy was trained to detect cocaine, heroin, mandrax, ecstasy, crystal meth and dagga,” explained Wiese.
He continued to note after three years in the police service, Buddy has had numerous successful operations including finding drugs worth R93 million in one year total. He also noted the incident where Buddy was shot in the leg during a cash-in-transit heist in 2021 at the intersection between Nadine Street and Albertina Sisulu Road in Maraisburg, as reported on November 17, 2021.
He noted they were driving in an unmarked police vehicle when they came upon the heist. During back and forth shooting between the perpetrators and police, one of the bullets from an AK47 hit Buddy through the vehicle. Buddy was hurt in his right hind leg and toes from his left foot were severed. Buddy received medical treatment after which he made a full recovery except for a limp in his hind leg. Wiese explained he then adopted Buddy after he was boarded.
• Also read: Beloved Buddy on the road to recovery
Some of Buddy’s other successes include a disruptive organisation in 2022 that targeted border syndicates smuggling goods from Mozambique into South Africa. Buddy reacted positively to hidden compartments in a vehicle containing what was believed to be heroin and methamphetamine were found. One suspect was arrested and an estimated R14 million worth of goods were confiscated. In 2021 Buddy found a crate destined for New Zealand during an operation where he was utilised at several courier companies. Inside the crate, a statue was found with 22kg of crystal meth valued at R6.4 million inside the head of the statue. In 2020, while investigating another courier company with his handler, Buddy reacted positively to a parcel with children’s books destined for Greece. Inside the books, around 2.5 kg of heroin was hidden.
“He is part of our family; a big teddy bear. He is very lovable, and an attention seeker. He was shot and he didn’t even whine, not even at the vet,” concluded Wiese.
