It always irritated Mike Vance that the four-legged coworker he got from Belgium wasn't as young as he was promised. Vance was told the Belgian malinois was 2 years old when selecting a new K-9 for the Seward County Sheriff's Office. A month-and-a-half later, Vance discovered the dog – Igor as he'd been named – was actually over 4.
“But by that time I'd already had a bond and certification with him,” Vance said. “So I kept him.”
They stayed together for more than eight years on the job. Over that time Igor helped seize $8.4 million in illegal drug currency, over 30 pounds of heroin, over 45 pounds of cocaine, more than 32 pounds of methamphetamine and over 1,400 pounds of marijuana. Igor also accompanied Vance to schools where he'd welcome affection. Igor was forced into retirement Nov. 5 because of a degenerative nerve disease in his back legs. A full month, to the day later, Igor suffered a stroke while playing in the backyard. Having already lived 12 full years, Igor was laid to rest.
“He was just a very good police dog,” Vance said. “He was reliable and I've had several calls from other agencies – Lancaster County deputies called me. They used him several times.”
Igor was the fourth K-9 Vance worked with and, by Vance's own account, one of the best-trained. Igor was trained in both narcotics and tracking with handler protection. Perhaps Igor's older age, having already been trained in Belgium and Illinois, played a role. He was also the first Belgian malinois Vance worked with. All the others were German shepherds.
Vance trusted Igor around children, including his own grandchildren. One of his grandchildren was raised with Igor. Vance could never trust his previous K-9 like that. Igor loved the social attention.
When it came time to work, though, Igor was always ready.
“Throughout the course of many years, I relied on Igor numerous times to come out and do his thing to end up catching the bad guys,” Deputy David Frye said. “Igor was always on point. He had an amazing nose.”
Frye remembered countless stops when Igor was called to the scene. One of those came in September when, as Frye described it, a driver was traveling across Interstate 80 under highly suspicious circumstances. Search consent was denied. Igor and Vance were called to the scene. Of course, Igor discovered the contraband concealed in the back of the truck.
“Igor helped me on some pretty tremendous cases,” Frye said. “Thinking out loud, I know numerous drug loads where we relied on Igor to get us that probable cause to get into the vehicle.”
Vance said he could easily call out to Igor, to the point where he could stop halfway in pursuit. He said there was only one serious bite in over eight years on duty. They sharpened their skills with training even on their days off.
“He was one of the best dogs out of the four I've worked with,” Vance said.
Igor's degenerative nerve disease was discovered after he struggled to jump into Vance's vehicle on the way to a scene. Vance knew something was wrong when Igor went to scratch the point of investigation on a vehicle and his leg came out from under him. There wasn't any pain involved, Igor was just slowly losing feeling in his back legs.
Igor wasn't happy with retired life. When Vance took the new K-9, Eros, out of his kennel and into the cruiser, Igor barked. He wanted to go back to work.
“I'm sure it was hard on him to all of a sudden stay home,” Vance said.
Veterinarians told Vance exercise helped keep the disease manageable. So Igor regularly played in the backyard. Then, on Dec. 5, Vance's grandson came running into the house saying Igor wouldn't get up. Drooling and moaning, Igor struggled to his feet. Once upright, his body was crooked. The vet told Vance it was a stroke and Igor's time had come.
News of Igor's death spread throughout the department and in neighboring law enforcement circles. The determined K-9 Vance once felt duped about left a legacy and memories behind.
One Lincoln Police Department officer caught wind of Igor's passing. They sent Vance a text on Dec. 9 morning, offering condolences and a summary of the past eight years.
“He was a legend, Mike,” the message said.
