Since 2003, Doxie rode in the back of a patrol car with Sergeant Greg Richardson.

Richardson and Doxie

Now the former deputy with the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office will ride in the back of Richardson’s truck as a retired canine officer.

Commissioners today approved the dog’s retirement, declaring him surplus property, which allows Richardson to keep the dog as a pet with the understanding Doxie can no longer perform the tasks he did as an officer.

There were plenty of things the dog did as an officer, Richardson said after Commissioner Vernon Bryant gave Doxie a retirement collar.

The dog ran 168 tracks, searched 261 vehicles and helped seize $200,000 worth of money, property and drugs, working with local and federal agencies. During his career, Doxie was taken to more than 100 schools and churches for demonstrations.

All this from a dog who didn’t get along with his new handler when they first met.

“The first night I took him home he stayed in the car all night because I was scared to death of him after he showed me his wrong side,” Richardson said in notes called The Doxie Experience. “When I first saw Doxie I thought he was the skinniest and ugliest dog I had ever seen and I’m sure he felt the same way about me.”

Wrote Richardson, “It took me getting my eyelid stitched back to my face to really respect the power that these types of dogs possess.”

With feeding and training in Fayetteville, the dog gained weight and Richardson discovered he was intelligent and headstrong. “I also found out he was throwing his weight around trying to control and boss me around.”

Working those issues out, they became close friends and working partners. “Doxie has a mean personality sometimes, but he also has a heart of gold. When he is not working he is a big baby and loves to be around my two children and wife but is very protective of them.”

Richardson said following the presentation he was going to be lost with Doxie, marking an end to the sergeant’s canine work. Richardson will remain a sergeant overseeing patrol deputies.

In work, Richardson said, “I’m going to miss him terribly, but unfortunately the birthdays have caught up with the both of us. Doxie changed my life and made it and me so much better and for that I owe him so much thanks and I promise him, he will never worry about anything as long as he has a breath of air in him.”