Wounded K-9 officer goes home, hailed as hero
Dazed but healthy, Casper the wounded sheriff's office K-9 walked out of a suburban West Palm Beach animal hospital Saturday after successful surgery to remove a bullet that struck him during a deadly police shootout Friday in Jupiter.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office dog survived a shootout Friday evening that claimed the life of Philip O'Shea, 46, who deputies had been pursuing since a bar robbery that morning.
Deputies had pursued O’Shea to Jupiter following a shootout off Okeechobee Boulevard early Friday in which a deputy was injured diving for cover.
K9 Casper returns home from the hospital after taking a bullet that was meant for his K9 handler. pic.twitter.com/t7Xlgwff8h
— PBSO (@PBCountySheriff) May 13, 2017
Details of the final shootout were scant, but deputies say it took place in a parking lot near the Wood Duck apartments on Military Trail south of Toney Penna Drive.
During the encounter, Casper was struck in the left hip by gunfire. The bullet missed his vital organs, and it was removed with surgery at Palm Beach Veterinary Specialists, according to a video posted on Twitter by the sheriff's office.
PBSO K9 Kasper took a bullet that was meant for his K9 Partner. He is currently recovering and in stable condition. pic.twitter.com/qVlXMmPbTx
— PBSO (@PBCountySheriff) May 13, 2017
By Saturday afternoon, the bullet was out and Casper had recovered from anesthesia. The video showed him walking out of the clinic with relative ease.
“He’s on antibiotics and is walking fairly well, all things considered,” said Michele Tucker, the veterinary center’s managing director of patient services, on the video.
