Donors Pay to Save Sight of Police Dog

DULUTH, Minn. – Newspaper readers were so touched by the story of a blind police dog named Timber that they paid for an operation to restore his sight.

In fact, they paid for the $2,500 surgery many times over.

Officer Michelle Rafferty was ready to cover the cost out of her own pocket rather than let her cash-strapped department exchange her partner for a new dog.

But when a story about Timber’s cataract operation and Rafferty’s devotion appeared in the Star Tribune of Minneapolis last month, readers sent more than $20,000.

“It has blown me away and changed my life forever,” Rafferty said.

Donors ranged from the rich and famous to kids who emptied their piggy banks.

Two weeks later, 22-month-old Timber appears to see well, perhaps for the first time. When nature called last week, he had no trouble zigzagging through a stand of trees before selecting one that suited his purpose.

“He seems spunkier, a little more sassy,” Rafferty said. “His operating speed seems like it’s picked up a little.”

The extra money went into the Duluth Police K-9 Fund, where it will pay for equipment, dogs or other needs of the unit where Timber and Rafferty serve in northern Minnesota.

Timber is about a month away from returning to work.