K9 Copper joined the Cocoa police Department at 13 weeks old. 

His mother Maggie and father Walker were bred because of their exceptional empathy, calm demeanor, and solid temperament. The goal was a litter of puppies who would be excellent companions and possible therapy dogs. One little puppy stood out. His breeders, Cynthia and Olsie Owens of Oak Hill Kennels in NC, looked to place him where his skills would be of the most benefit.  The owner of his father, Maureen Finch and her friend  Cocoa Councilwoman Brenda Warner convinced Chief Mike Cantaloupe  to give this puppy a job. 
Brenda took him to the Cocoa PD Squad room to introduce him to his coworkers. That is where his name became Copper. He reminded everyone of the little puppy from Disney’s The Fox and the Hound. 
He went home with K9 Officer Delos Santos who started his training in tracking by having Copper find his own children. 
Chief Cantaloupe decided to assign Copper to Officer Chris Hattaway in the Community Policing Unit. 

 Officer Hattaway  took Copper when he was 16 weeks old. Raised him, trained him, loved him. Gave 110% to community policing. Expanded existing programs, developed new ones. Made sure every child in a Cocoa school knew Copper and that he was there to help when they needed it. He took Copper to meet victims of domestic violence and rape. He got him certified to be a comfort dog for witnesses in court, got him tracking training, therapy dog certified, trained to sit with children during difficult interviews, and showed him in the largest AKC Conformation show in the country. He won the prestigious AKC ACE Award for excellence in Uniform Service. They made national tv and their videos still run on AKC TV.  

Copper spent a year with Officer Grey while Chris was assigned to the detective squad. Officer Grey is an experienced K9 handler and trainer. She continued the programs and showed Copper in AKC and UKC conformation shows.

Chief Evander Collier has not allowed K9 Copper to work since approximately April of 2022. He has demonstrated that he does not want Officer Hattaway and his partner Copper to do their  jobs and have the relationship with the community and most importantly the kids of Cocoa since he became the new Chief. 

Multiple people have been informed that the other K9 officers and supervisors voted to retire Copper to Chris. In a retaliatory move against  Chris for deciding to move to another agency within the county, where his skills can be used effectively, Chief Collier decided at the last minute to assign Copper to another officer. This current officer  has not been trained in therapy, tracking or K9 handling. 

Help get Copper home to Officer Hattaway and his family where he can continue to thrive and all of the family members can be made whole again.