The Alachua Police Department (APD) carried heavy hearts this week as crews said goodbye to K-9 Thor, who reached his “End of Watch” when he passed away on Sunday. 

The 13-year-old patrol dog served eight years with APD and was surrounded by family during his passing, which was announced by APD in a Facebook post.  

His loss leaves behind a hole not only for his handler, APD patrol division Sgt. Justin Horn, but the entire Alachua community.  

“Thor was more than just a partner, he was family,” the post said. “His loyalty, courage, and unwavering service will never be forgotten.” 

According to an email from Horn, the Belgian Malinois, born in July 2012, was donated to APD and joined its force on May 30, 2014, at 2 years of age. He came already named “Thor” and the crews decided to keep it, since it seemed to fit him. 

Horn said law enforcement K-9s are usually purchased through kennels that get the dogs bred overseas, specifically for law enforcement work. The dogs are often purchased with funds from donations, grants and help from local businesses.   

Thor underwent months of extensive training to get “patrol ready,” as all K-9’s must go through.  

First, the state requires 480 hours minimum of initial K-9 Team training. After that, the K-9 is evaluated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to receive its patrol certification. 

The certification allows the K-9s to be used for tracking suspects and missing people, searching for evidence, such as weapons, drugs and explosives, apprehending dangerous criminals and conducting building and area searches.  

All K-9 Teams continue ongoing training throughout the rest of their careers, often conducting weekly training sessions to keep or improve their skills. Additional training is needed for any detection certification.  

Horn said APD has two active patrol dogs with one certified in narcotics detection. Depending on health, age and workload, K-9s can typically serve between 6 and 9 years. 

During his career, Thor became certified in narcotics detection and patrol functions, including building searches, locating wanted persons and finding lost evidentiary items that would’ve otherwise gone unseen. He helped solve numerous crimes that saved lives. 

Horn said his most notable memories with Thor were tracking down a 15-year-old robbery suspect across US HWY 441, tracking down a burglar who fled the scene to hide beneath a mattress in a yard several streets away, and detaining a suspect who attacked an officer at a traffic stop.  

“Thor had a look to him that made people that didn’t know him very wary about being around him,” Horn said. “More times than not, criminals would surrender upon seeing him instead of going into flight or fight mode, creating safer outcomes for both the suspects and officers.” 

Beyond being one of the best resources law enforcement has to solve cases, Horn said K-9s and handlers share a unique bond most people don’t get to understand. 

He said because the dogs are often with their handlers every hour of the day from the time they start working together until they retire, a K-9 and handler are around each other even more than their families. 

When a wanted criminal or key piece of evidence is located by their K-9, Horn said the feeling a handler gets is more than rewarding. He said it’s a breakthrough moment of the team’s trust and training culminating in the right place at the right time. 

“It’s more than just finding evidence or the bad guy; it’s knowing we were able to make a difference, helping to solve something important,” Horn said. “We were part of a team—human and K-9—that uncovered something others might not have noticed or solved a problem that would not have been solved without us.” 

In February 2023, the Alachua City Commission recognized Thor during a regular meeting for his eight years of dedicated service. Following his passing on Aug. 24, Thor will be cremated and placed in an urn with his photo and name plate. 

APD’s Facebook post about Thor garnered over 500 likes, 73 comments and 65 shares. Some remembered times from when APD first acquired Thor or being at the vet with him during his death, while many sent condolences to Horn and the entire department grateful for his service. 

“Thank you, Thor, for protecting and serving with honor,” said APD in the social media post. “Rest easy, faithful friend. You will always be a hero to us.”