K9 Winston, Amherst, Massachusetts

Died – 6/15/21

Amherst Police K9 Winston passed away, the department’s first comfort dog

The Amherst Police Department’s comfort dog, Winston, has passed away suddenly.The news was posted on Winston’s Instagram page telling the community Winston became ill and was diagnosed with Lymphoma. He passed away on Wednesday, June 15th. Lymphoma is a cancer that can spread rapidly and may affect any organ.The chocolate English Labrador Retriever was donated to the department by Boonefield Labradors in New Hampshire as a puppy in 2020. He was partnered with Officer Laramee to work in the community to provide support to families involved in sensitive, emotional, or serious cases.The community was tasked to help come up with a name for the department’s new comfort dog. With more than 6,000 votes for Winston, Otis, Milo, or Ollie. Winston was officially sworn into the Amherst Police Department in September 2020.“He was great at his job. Good looks, supreme confidence, and willing to saddle up whenever the bell rang. He will be deeply missed by his brothers and sisters @amherstpolicema and the many communities he visited. We are forever indebted to @boonefieldlabradors for the honor of receiving one of their pups and molding him into a great working dog. We hope to have a memorial for Winston in the future and will keep you all posted. A special thank you to @umassvettech for all the guidance the last week. I’ll miss your partner!”On July 19th, Winston would have been 2 years old.

Submitted By Jim Cortina

James A. Cortina has been involved with police dogs since 1972 and currently on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Jim has been appointed as Treasurer since its inception in 1991. Jim is one of the charter members of the C.P.W.D.A. organization. Since 1975 he has been a certified professional dog trainer and received his Master Trainer Certification in 1985. During his career he has provided armed K-9 strike crowd control for security agencies in Connecticut and out of state security companies. In conjunction with other members of the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Board of Directors, he helped to draft Connecticut Statute 53-247(e) "Intentional Injury or Killing of Police K-9" which was passed by the Senate in 1993 and also assisted in implementing the prestigious Daniel Wasson Memorial K-9 Award in 1992. In 1993 he helped coordinate the North American Police Work Dog Association Nationals in New London, Connecticut. He was appointed Training Director for the New London County Work Dog Association from 1985-1987. He performed decoy work for Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. in police K-9 demonstrations, trained several local police department canines, and coordinated training workshops for out-of-state police departments. He participated in the United States Police K-9 Association Trials in Croton on Hudson, New York in 1985 as a decoy. He is an avid photographer and received photography awards in 1989, 1990, and 1991 and currently takes photographs for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc.