Exhausted officer rescues tiny puppy – sits at shelter for 4 hours just to get her help
Police officers across the U.S. give themselves every day to protect and serve the communities in which they work. Many of them work long hours, foregoing sleep and time spent with their families to make sure their citizens are safe. One Lakeland, Florida, police officer recently went above and beyond the call of duty by staying overnight in a shelter to get the puppy he’d rescued some help.
A puppy in need
Officer Kareem Garibaldi of the Lakeland Police Department in Florida was on patrol early one morning when he spotted a little puppy wandering the streets with no collar. Not wanting her to get hurt, Officer Garibaldi picked her up and took her back to the station – and eventually home with him once his shift was over.
Officer Garibaldi went above and beyond
The next day, Garibaldi took it upon himself, during his time off, to scour the neighborhood where he had found the puppy to look for the dog’s owner. Knocking on doors in the neighborhood, he had no luck in finding who the little pitbull/boxer mix belonged to. He even posted pictures of the lost pup on social media, but no owner came forward.
Eventually, after a few days of no luck, he took the dog to the SPCA Florida Medical Center to get checked out. The officer, fresh off of a 12-hour shift, waited in the waiting room from 8:45 a.m. until noon while the puppy was being checked out. Falling asleep on a bench, the two were spotted by Connie Johnson, safety manager at the shelter, who took their photo.
“I walked in, and that’s when I saw him and the puppy,” Johnson told The Dodo. “He was exhausted, the puppy was exhausted, and they were sleeping. It was one of those moments that just grabs your heart. He was so determined to get her help.”
The story goes viral
The Lakeland Police Department shared the photo and story on its Facebook page,
“It’s the kindhearted officers like this that make the Lakeland Police Department truly unique,” his colleagues wrote on Facebook. “Having worked a long weekend, Officer Garibaldi still found the energy at the end of his shift to help man’s best friend.”
Officer Garibaldi was given the Hometown Hero Award for his actions by the SPCA Florida and Representative Dennis A. Ross. Officer Garibaldi’s compassion and dedication to his community made it all possible. According to a department spokesperson:
“That is what happens with the officers in our department. So many of them do such wonderful things to help the community – but they are humble. They don’t do it for personal recognition so it usually goes unnoticed.”
The puppy was eventually adopted by a dispatcher who named her Hope. And to think, none of this could have happened without the extra effort of Officer Garibaldi.
Watch the video below for more on this heartwarming story.
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