Slain officer's K-9 partner gets new home

SHELBY, N.C. — While a North Carolina community mourns the shooting death of a police officer, his K-9 partner is getting a new home.

Shelby officer Tim Brackeen's K-9 partner, Ciko, is starting a new life with a familiar face.

As a request from Brackeen’s family, Ciko will retire with Howard Young and his wife, Lisa. Young, the Shelby Police Department's K-9 trainer, trained Ciko as a puppy.

“He’s actually having to be retrained to become a pet,’ Howard Young said. “He’s never been a pet. He’s (always) been a working tool. He’s always been Tim’s partner.”

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Young said Ciko is a police dog, trained on narcotics, tracking and taking down perpetrators. The transition to retirement won’t be easy.

“We are trying to integrate him into becoming part of my family. Right now, he has bonded very closely with me, and that’s been a process that has taken a few weeks now,” Howard Young said.

RollOver Pets in downtown Shelby is trying to raise money for Ciko’s family.

Jennipher Harrill said Brackeen and Ciko often visited the shop so Ciko could bathe.

“Ciko is not a shop-around dog, he’s a specially trained K-9,” she said. "He’s a police dog. He would come straight in, follow his commands and get his bath and then come right out.”

Harrill is hoping to raise enough money for Ciko so he can have the retirement that she says he deserves.

“It’s not that he doesn’t have enough now, it's just that he deserves more,” Harrill said. “(He needs) some open space to run free; we need to build a fence for him. He needs a larger kennel. He’s no longer out and about like he’s accustomed to, so he needs a larger, safer kennel for him to be in.”

Harrill said people who want to donate can stop by the store or connect with her on the shop's Facebook page.

Irving Fenner Jr. is accused of killing Brackeen last month. Brackeen was shot while serving a warrant and died from his injuries two days later. After the shooting, Fenner escaped to Rhode Island and was taken into custody days later.

Fenner was extradited last week to North Carolina, and the district attorney said he will seek the death penalty if he is convicted in Brackeen’s death.

Cox Media Group