Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Archie Bradley, fiancée donate puppies to local police departments
Phillies pitcher Archie Bradley, fiancée donate puppies to local police departments
Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Archie Bradley and his fiancée Raegan Poole donated puppies from their litter to local police departments. FOX 29's Thomas Drayton meets the future K9 officers Liberty, Justice and Doc on Good Day Philadelphia.
PHILADELPHIA - They're not quite ready for the big leagues, but the Philadelphia Police Department and Burlington County Police Department added new four-legged prospects courtesy of Phillies pitcher Archie Bradley and his fiancée Raegan Poole.
Liberty, Justice and Doc were presented to the local departments in a ceremony held Thursday night at Citizen's Bank Park. While still early in their training, each dog displayed a calm seriousness that's necessary for police work.
MORE SPORTS HEADLINES
- Hurts, Prescott set for first meeting as Eagles visit Cowboys
- Schmidt: Harper is clear MVP, he's Pete Rose with power
- Philadelphia makes pitch to host 2026 Fifa World Cup games
Raegan said she and Archie wanted to keep their hunting dog Crash's bloodline going and welcomed a litter of seven lab puppies. When the couple heard about the critical need for K9 police dogs, Raegan said they "jumped" at the opportunity to offer up some of their beautiful pups.
"We knew they were going to go to work, one way or another, so when we found out there was a need for K9 units, we jumped all over it," Raegan told FOX 29's Thomas Drayton.
Liberty and Justice will enter a 10-week training course to become bomb-sniffing dogs with the Philadelphia Police Department.
Phillies pitcher Archie Bradley and his fiancée Raegan Poole donated three of their puppies to local police departments.
Doc, named after Phillies pitching legend and baseball Hall of Famer Roy Halladay, will work for the Burlington Police Department. The brothers will all be trained a the Philadelphia K9 Academy in January.
"When you purchase a dog it's probably about $8k-$10k," Burlington City Detective Cpl. Czajka said. "That's a very big expense for any police department, so getting a dog donated is extremely important."
For Archie and Raegan's "hard work in the community outside of baseball," the Philadelphia Sheriff's Office presented the couple with honorary deputy badges.
"We wanted these guys to go to work and this is such a unique part of our hearts now and such a special legacy to leave here in Philly no matter how long we'll be here and we can't wait to see what you guys do with them," Raegan said.
___
DOWNLOAD: FOX 29 NEWS APP | FOX 29 WEATHER AUTHORITY APP
SUBSCRIBE: Good Day Digest Newsletter | FOX 29 Philly on YouTube