INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — When he walks into his home, he hides his work belt and he turns his radio off. It’s been this way for the past month with Indian River County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Christian Mathisen gingerly stepping around his K9 partner of seven years and acting as if he too doesn’t go to work anymore.
Any sign that it may be time to head off to work such as seeing Mathisen wear his work gear triggers a frenzy of excitement in Kato.
Kato, a German shepherd sidelined because of injury and possibly disease from the department’s K9 unit, likely knows better.
“They are pretty sharp,” said Mathisen. “He’s not dumb. He knows I’m going to work.”
That hurts both of them.
Signs that something wasn’t right with Kato appeared in late November.
His once regal gate was out of whack and getting in and out of the truck was beyond a chore.
Veterinarians discovered that Kato has two herniated discs in his spine and they think he has other afflictions as well, said Mathisen.
Tests are being conducted to see if he has a neurological disorder, which can cause paralysis.
The news crushed Mathisen and other members of the K9 unit.
“You go seven years with him being your partner day and night,” he said. “It’s like what just happened? It’s like going from the best feeling to the absolute worst.”
On Dec. 20, Kato’s retirement papers were turned in. In a few months another K9, Jando, also a German shepherd, will retire due to age.
Mathisen now patrols Indian River County without a K9 partner.
Early on after Kato was sidelined, he found himself pulling off the road in sleepy parts of the county to throw a ball and exercise his partner.
But the dog wasn’t there.
“For the first week I was completely lost,” said Mathisen.
Over the years, Jando and Kato have caught several hundred suspects who otherwise might have got away, said Pat White, a supervisor of the K9 unit.
One morning last week about 4 a.m., Jando led his partner and K9 handler Brian Reimsnyder to the front door of a young man who about 30 minutes earlier was believed to have snatched a purse in a burglary.
Jando stood sentry right outside the door while Reimsnyder was led through the house by the teen’s father who thought his son was asleep.
The purse was recovered and it was discovered that another Indian River County teen was also involved in the burglary.
“That poor dog is going to be crushed when he discovers he won’t be doing this anymore,” said Reimsnyder of Jando, who turns 10 in the spring. “He just does a phenomenal job tracking. … These dogs amaze me every time. This work is absolutely their passion and that is what just breaks my heart.”
Both Kato and Jando have tracked and helped apprehend men accused of murder.
“Kato is a star,” Mathisen said. “I’m telling you, if Kato could drive a truck, then I would have been out of work.”
The unit’s German shepherds come from Europe and cost between $8,000 and $10,000 each.
A year ago there were nine K9s on the team.
If Jando were to retire before a replacement is found and trained, that will bring the number of dogs in the unit to six.
That’s a huge concern for White.
“These are not pets,” said White. “These are our partners. They become so much more than a pet. We spend more time with them then we do our spouses and believe me, sometimes that doesn’t go over real well.”
As it stands now, the department set aside enough money to buy one dog to replace Jando whose retirement due to age was anticipated years ago. “What has happened to Kato has completely caught us off guard,” White said.
White said the only source of potential money for his unit is a trust fund of about $4,000 that was bequeathed to them in a Vero Beach woman’s will many years ago.
The fund was intended for specialty K-9 care the sheriff‘s office wouldn’t pay for, such as therapy or treatments for aged or diseased dogs.
Mathisen said he intends to pay for Kato’s care and bills from here on out, and does not want to dig into the trust fund.
“He’s my responsibility. He’s my baby,” said Mathisen. “I couldn’t have asked for a better partner.”
As for Jando, after he retires, like Kato he will continue to live out his life in the deputy’s home.
“There is no way I could ever part with this relationship just because he isn’t working,” said Reimsnyder. “He will be king. He will have the high life living out the rest of his days as retired officer.”
