Departed dog richly deserves public’s love
Animals that perform important services for the community can feel like family members for us all.
Animals that perform important services for the community can feel like family members for us all. That’s especially true of dogs that gain public attention for their heroism. There’s no better example of that than Jynx, the Berks County Sheriff’s Office K-9 that died of cancer this month at the age of 12.
Jynx gained the status of local hero in the summer of 2011. He and his handler, Berks County Deputy Sheriff Kyle Pagerly, were trying to arrest an armed fugitive in a wooded area near Hawk Mountain in Albany Township. Pagerly was ambushed and fatally shot. Jynx had led Pagerly to the spot where the suspect was hiding, and likely saved lives that night by alerting other officers to the killer’s presence.
Pagerly’s death led to a tremendous outpouring of love for the late deputy, his family, the sheriff’s department and the broader law enforcement community. In the process, Jynx became an enduring symbol of service and sacrifice.
Trained to detect explosives and track people, Jynx had been working with Pagerly since the sheriff’s department’s K-9 unit was formed in 2009. The two went on searches at the county prison and performed demonstrations for organizations. The night Pagerly died they were working on a law enforcement task force on a dangerous assignment.
The bond between Pagerly and Jynx was so strong that the dog was retired after the fatal shooting. But Jynx continued serving the public in a new way: as a community icon. The dog was showered with honors for heroism and proved popular at community events, helping to raise attention and funds for a charity started in Pagerly’s memory and other good causes.
Even though it’s been nearly a decade since the tragedy that brought Jynx to the public’s attention, the people of Berks County have not forgotten him. When Sheriff Eric J. Weaknecht announced last summer that the dog had been diagnosed with an aggressive cancer, there was yet another outpouring of love from the
law enforcement community and far beyond.
“Thousands of people are praying for Jynx,” Alecia Pagerly Eberly, Kyle’s widow, said when the dog’s illness was made public. “Jynx meant the world to Kyle. It’s amazing how many people have contacted me about Jynx. The law enforcement community is like one giant family.”
Painful as this story is, we hope all involved can take heart looking back on Jynx’s life as a public servant and as a loving member of Alecia Pagerly’s family.
We extend our deepest sympathies to the Pagerly family and all those who came to know and love Jynx.
The broad public affection for Jynx is part of a heartening sign of tremendous support for police in general and for K-9 units in particular. They are part of a special group of animals that do important jobs to serve mankind by doing tasks that their human partners cannot. This includes search and rescue animals, drug-sniffing dogs and special service animals.
They deserve special treatment in our society while they are working and after they are retired. It is also appropriate to mourn them and pay them tribute when they pass on.
May the memory of Jynx remind us to support their work at all times, not just after tragedy strikes. Any one of us might need the services of one of these special animals, and it is important that we appreciate the fact that they are ready and willing to serve when called upon.