AKC Awards for Canine Excellence

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| Print | By | October 15, 2008 3:26 PM

The AKC Awards for Canine Excellence (ACE) awards, announced last month, honored outstanding dogs in Law Enforcement, Search and Rescue, Therapy, Service and Exemplary Companion Dog. The winners are:

Service Dog: “Cary” owned by Sara Elizabeth Solomon of Nashville, TN
15-Carry Lab.jpg
The 10-year-old Labrador has been 14-year-old Lizzy’s helper for eight years. Cary was trained by Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) to help his owner with such things as opening doors, turning lights on and off, and helping her get dressed.

Therapy Dog: “Zadok” owned by Julie Burk of Damascus, OR
15-Zadok Akita.bmp
Julie and her 6-year-old Akita Zadok visits hospitals, children’s healthcare facilities, and prison inmates. They also consoled students after the Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University shootings.

Law Enforcement: “Lex” owned by Jerome and Rachel Lee of Quitman, MS
15-Lex GSD.jpg
Lex, a retired military dog, is a seven-year-old German shepherd who served in Iraq with Corporal Dustin Jerome Lee as an explosives detection dog and narcotics detection dog simultaneously. When Cpl. Lee was killed in a mortar attack, the injured Lex remained by Lee’s side until forcibly removed. Jerome and Rachel petitioned to adopt the dog that served with their son. Lex now visits veterans at VA hospitals.

Exemplary Companion Dog: “Annie” owned by Donna Rock of Lacombe, LA
15-Annie Doberman.bmp
Donna Rock, who was born without arms, adopted Annie as a companion, but the 8-year-old Doberman Pinscher became her assistance dog as well as competing with her in obedience trials.

Search and Rescue Dog: “Taffy” owned by Lt. Douglas Williams of Laguna Niguel, CA
15-Taffy Bloodhound.jpg
Taffy and her owner volunteer for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department near Los Angeles, where Lt. Williams is the Supervisor of the Search and Rescue K9 Operations Unit. The eight-year-old Bloodhound helped to find lost people, hiding criminals, and worked on over 115 documented cases for the police.

The ACE recipients in each category will receive $1,000 and an engraved sterling-silver collar medallion at the nationally televised AKC/Eukanuba National Championship in Long Beach, California on December 13, 2008. In addition they will be honored individually at local dog shows this fall. Read more about these incredible dogs and their partners at www.akc.org