Died 2\/12\/18
\nHandler – Officer Chad Johnson<\/p>\n
When Max passed away on the afternoon of Monday, Feb. 12, Chad Johnson not only lost his best friend but also his longtime partner in crime-fighting. Johnson lived and worked \u201c24\/7\u201d with Max, the Paxton Police Department\u2019s first police dog. Since Max was acquired by the department in 2006 at only 19 or 20 months old, the yellow Labrador and Johnson, his handler, had been pretty much inseparable. Max loved his job \u2014 and it showed every time the two would leave their house in Paxton to go to work. \u201cHe loved it. He loved to work,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cIn the middle of the night, when we\u2019d get a call to come out for a canine sniff, I\u2019d get up, come in there (to his room) and as soon as he\u2019d see me getting ready he\u2019d jump up, go outside, do his thing, and I\u2019d finish getting ready and come out and he\u2019d be waiting right there ready to get in the car and go. And once them lights came on (in the squad car), he was up, he was whining, he was wanting out and to do his thing. And he did his thing and did it well.\u201d Before retiring from the police department in fall 2014 following a six-year career, Max gained a reputation for his accurate and reliable nose, which he used countless times to track the presence of illegal drugs and cash in pulled-over vehicles, to go along with fleeing suspects. \u201cHe was good,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cHe had a good nose and a good demeanor about him. … I mean, there\u2019s a lot of drugs that have been found by him \u2014 drugs, cash that was associated with the drugs. We had a lot of success with him.\u201d Max spent his later years battling health issues, including diabetes and seizures, Johnson said. After having a \u201cbad\u201d seizure recently, Johnson made the decision to have him put down. Max died around 4:20 p.m. Feb. 12 at the Paxton Veterinary Clinic. Johnson still went to work that night, admitting that he needed to keep busy to keep Max\u2019s death off of his mind. \u201cIt\u2019s easier for me to keep busy than to take time off and sit there and think about it,\u201d Johnson said. Johnson continues to mourn the loss of his buddy. \u201cHe was just a big, old fuzzy dog,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cHe was a lovable dog. He just loved attention.\u201d One of Max\u2019s favorite things to do was play with his ball. He could often be found chasing his ball up and down the halls of the police department\u2019s headquarters on U.S. 45. \u201cPeople would come in, and he\u2019d grab a ball, take it to them, and they\u2019d end up throwing it up and down the hallway for him,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cThen he\u2019d be rubbing up against you wanting to pet him.\u201d Max loved food, too \u2014 \u201canything he can get his mouth on,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cI always had to watch how much he got, because he loved to eat,\u201d Johnson said. Johnson immediately fell in love with Max when the two began working together upon Max being acquired from Mid-Michigan Kennels in Eaton Rapids, Mich. Johnson said donations from the community were collected over a 30-day period in order to buy Max and have him and Johnson trained together for about $8,000. \u201cUp at training, his nickname was Hank the Tank,\u201d Johnson said, \u201cbecause he was 100 miles an hour. When we were doing tracks up there \u2014 tracking people or whatever, for training and stuff \u2014 or when we did tracks here, he was 100 miles an hour. And if I tried to slow him down, he would just get down low to that ground and just pull me as hard as he could. He dragged me places. I mean, he was just ready to go. He wanted to work.\u201d Over the next six years, Johnson and Max would develop a special bond. \u201cI was constantly training with him,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cIf we had a slow night, I was working with him, training with him more, trying to tighten up my training, making it that much better. \u201cHe was a wonderful partner, a dedicated member of the police family and my family, and he will be missed.\u201d Johnson said he will never forget his friend. \u201cHis affection. Just him being there,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cI mean, I\u2019d come home from work and he\u2019d be right there. He\u2019d be right there next to you, wanting some loving. \u201cHe was my best friend.\u201d Johnson said he has no plans to get another canine partner at this point. \u201cIt\u2019s too emotional for me. Too attached,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cYa know, I\u2019d been with him all those years and to go through what he\u2019s gone through and trying to keep him happy \u2014 yeah, I\u2019m done.\u201d The police department currently has one canine \u2014 Tago, handled by officer Thomas Sink. Johnson hopes the tradition of having a canine on staff continues well into the future. \u201cHopefully the program keeps going because it\u2019s an awesome program,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Died 2\/12\/18 Handler – Officer Chad Johnson When Max passed away on the afternoon of Monday, Feb. 12, Chad Johnson not only lost his best friend but also his longtime partner in crime-fighting. Johnson lived and worked \u201c24\/7\u201d with Max, the Paxton Police Department\u2019s first police dog. Since Max was acquired by the department in …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4651,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[32],"class_list":["post-4649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-k9memorial","tag-il"],"yoast_head":"\n