Retired Thurston County Sheriff’s K9 Rex dies

A retired Thurston County Sheriff’s K9 has died.

Rex, who retired Dec. 31, 2015, died at about 3 a.m. Friday of cancer, according to Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Carla Carter.

The German Shepherd was commissioned during a February 2008 ceremony, and paired with Sgt. Rod Ditrich.

“They were an impressive and dedicated team,” Carter said.

Ditrich described Rex as a “very protective partner” who helped capture hundreds of bad guys. “He put his life on the line for me and saved my life many times,” Ditrich told The Olympian.

After retirement, Rex became Ditrich’s family dog.

“At home he was part of the family,” Ditrich said. “He loved the kids. The kids loved him. He was a totally different dog off duty.”

Rex hadn’t shown any signs of being sick before he was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer on Dec. 27, Ditrich said. The cancer originated in his spleen, and spread to his kidneys, liver and lungs. It was untreatable, Ditrich said.

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office K9 Unit posted an announcement about Rex’s death on Facebook on Sunday.

“Please keep Rex’s handler, Sgt. Ditrich and family, in your thoughts and prayers,” the post stated. “Rest easy Rex, we’ll take it from here.”

This story was originally published January 8, 2018 at 10:30 AM with the headline "Retired Thurston County Sheriff’s K9 Rex dies."