Boomer, UA's K-9 Hero, Retires After 10 Years

0:00It's April 5th. Welcome in. This is Birmingham News Today, where local news meets AI. I'm Corey with the story. University of Alabama Police Department, K9 Boomer, a yellow lab, just hung up his badge after 10 years on the job. This explosive detection dog locked 30,000 hours sniffing out danger, and his handler, field training officer Patrick Henkel, was right there for the final radio call. They threw him a retirement bash complete with a tennis ball salute, and a custom cake made a peanut butter and kibble. Boomer covered protection details across several counties, like Fayette and Bibb, hitting big events such as the Birmingham Bowl and the World Games Inn. Birmingham, plus sports and Tuscaloosa. Henkel gives all the credit to Boomer, saying he does the heavy lifting while Henkel just points the way. The dog beat back two snake bites and even cancer, though it caused him one toe along the way. Now Boomer's easing into retirement life, staking his claim on the couch, where no one else dares sit.

1:00Henkel worked those 12 to 18 hour shifts with him daily, so it's well earned. You a police still rolls with a squad of Labrador retrievers and a German short-haired pointer, keeping campus safe as Boomer chills.