Eyes that would 'melt your soul': Hawk, the trailblazing Calgary police trauma dog, dies at 14
CBC
Ten years after he became the first dog in Canada to support a victim during their testimony in court, Calgary Police Service's Hawk has died.
Hawk, a 14-year-old Labrador retriever, passed away peacefully on Thursday.
"He had those eyes that had the ability to melt your soul," said Hawk's handler, Const. Darryl Jones. "He's always been an old soul."
The trailblazing service dog joined the police force in September 2013.
Hawk, who graduated from specialized training by the Pacific Assistance Dog Society (PADS), was CPS's first dog on the victim assistance support team (VAST).
At the time, he was only the third trauma dog of his kind in Canada.
The next year, Hawk became the first dog in the country to sit with a victim as they testified in court.
In October 2014, prosecutor Rose Greenwood made an application to expand legislation that allowed for a "support person" to accompany a victim.
Justice Bruce Millar granted the application, opening the door for hundreds of other dogs across the country to be permitted to provide emotional support to vulnerable people, often children, as they gave testimony in the courtroom.
At Greenwood's trial, Hawk was allowed to sit with two children as they testified: a seven-year-old girl who had been sexually abused by her father and her nine-year-old brother, who was a witness in the trial.
"There was an immediate trust there," said Greenwood.
"We were hoping that this becomes the norm, and a decade later, it is. The norm is to have children with court support dogs whenever they have to testify in criminal trials."
Jones says Hawk's calm, laid-back and "just-go-with-the-flow" personality made him a great fit for supporting people who'd been through trauma.
"He just really loved human contact and liked to be around people, and that in itself, for people going through a difficult time, was very comforting and reassuring and just allowed them to have that non-judgmental support from a dog," said Jones.
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