| By Natalie Walston
A fuzzy, four-legged gift from a county Farm Bureau office to a local law enforcement agency turned out to be a lifesaver.
A search-and-rescue dog named Bailey recently found a developmentally disabled 13-year-old girl who had run away from home in the cold late at night. Champaign County Sheriff’s deputies, working with the bloodhound, found the girl within minutes; officials said without the dog the girl might have been missing longer.
Bailey’s trainer Tony Sells told the Urbana Daily Citizen that it was his first track as a K-9 handler and “I’m very proud of him.”
The sheriff’s office is thanking the Farm Bureau and other sponsors for giving them the bloodhound. Kay Chandler, a Champaign County Farm Bureau member and office administrator, found the dog for the sheriff’s office after stumbling across a Web page for rescue dogs for law enforcement.
Plus, the gift of the search-and-rescue dog was done as a memorial for one Champaign County Farm Bureau volunteer.
“We had a board member named Jerry Bailey who died in a farm accident in February of last year,” Chandler said. “I was trying to think of ways to honor him and I did so by getting a bloodhound for search and rescue.”
She added that Jerry Bailey was involved with safety issues as a Champaign County Farm Bureau board member. “He died in an accident clearing trees. One hit him from behind, and he never saw it,” she said.
Jason Dagger, OFBF organization director for Clark, Champaign and Madison counties, said the dog cost about $800. The Farm Bureau also partnered with a couple of grain companies, a local vet and some community members to buy the dog and help pay for training.
While a local family and the sheriff’s office are pleased with the work done by the dog, Jerry Bailey’s family members are proud, too.
“They think it’s a great tribute. He was always worried about kids and loved his grandkids,” Chandler said.
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