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Died 3/7/22
Handler – Logan Niles and Sam Strecker
Sheriff’s Office remembers retired K-9’s service to community
The life of a retired K-9 with Garfield County Sheriff’s Office was honored through a memorial service Wednesday afternoon. Spike, who was a 14-year-old Belgian malinois, served in Garfield County from 2011 to 2018 with then-K-9 deputies Logan Niles and Sam Strecker and died on March 7. “I’m thankful I had the opportunity to work with Spike, and I’m going to cherish all of those memories,” said Niles, now chief of Waukomis Police Department. Pastor Dave Jones, chaplain at the sheriff’s office, led the ceremony for the “four-legged officer” with family, friends and other members of law enforcement — including other GCSO K-9s Niko, TP and Diesel and Boba Fett from Enid Police Department — present. “Today, we honored Spike’s dedication and commitment to the job that he was trained to do,” Jones said on Wednesday.Spike started his law enforcement career at GCSO as a dual-purpose canine in the summer of 2011 with Niles. Niles said he fell in love with Spike’s athletic ability and put a lot of faith in his partner. “I know for a fact that Spike saved my life numerous times, and other people’s lives,” Niles said. Niles was later promoted to the rank of sergeant, so Strecker, now assistant chief of WPD, became Spike’s handler. Strecker said learning to trust Spike, who was his first K-9 partner took some time, but eventually, he was able to anticipate Spike’s next moves based on the dog’s body language. During the ceremony, Strecker recalled some of the work he and Spike did together, including locating drugs and tracking and apprehending crime suspects. “You just learn to put all your faith in your dog,” Strecker said. “He’s protected me — probably numerous times where I didn’t even know I was being protected.” Strecker said Spike was a “one-of-a-kind” dog who had his quirks about him, but Strecker got used to having the K-9 partner in the backseat of his car. Spike also participated in demonstrations at local schools. Spike retired from the force in 2018, going on to live with Strecker as a pet. The transition had a learning curve, but Spike lived out his days with the family. “It was a bittersweet moment,” Strecker said of Spike’s retirement. “I’m happy that I still have a bunch of pictures of us.” Niles said although K-9s are valuable tools for law enforcement agencies, they are “part of the family.” “I’m just thankful that after Spike retired, (Strecker and his wife) were able to take care of him, raise him like a pet and let them live out the good years,” Niles said.
