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In the line of fire
Canine cops are not routinely fitted with protective bulletproof vests despite their courage and fearlessness in combat situations. An ad campaign fights back.
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In the line of fire
I love dogs. I really do. I feel more comfortable playing with dogs than talking to friends. I love roughing them up, shaking their paws, massaging their muscles, scratching their ear, playing catch and kissing their spongy wet noses. It’s hard to admit this fact but, I think I just found a group of dedicated individuals that love dogs more than I.
Joe Berkeley and Dave Gardiner are creative socialists who were commissioned by Massachusetts Vest-a-dog to help raise monies for bulletproof vests to protect dogs in the line of fire. Canine cops are not routinely fitted with protective luxury, government funds don’t stretch to police pets despite their courage and fearlessness in combat situations.
This ad campaign is striking in its delivery, I was captivated from one picture to the next. Canines are shot (pardon…) in action and each photograph dog-tagged with a resonating message coming straight from the mind of the animal, “I can follow a criminal’s scent for up to 12 hours but all he needs is a gun to kill me in a second”. The narrative is perfectly illustrated through Christian Kozowyk magical lens and it’s difficult not to immediately donate to the cause, saving a trained animal to protect humans seems easy when the support from the community is collective, $10 can actually make a massive difference.
The cause is ongoing despite 100% vesting of the Massachusetts defence dogs. The vests provided in the program’s early years are running out of warranty – I know, back to the real world! I was desperate to find out if Australia’s police dogs are protected from harm, turns out that the Victoria Police Dog Squad Officer could see no need for them due to a lack of guns. I think it’s because no-one has thought of it as yet and the money needed from the government coiffers, as in the U.S., does not stretch to our police pets.
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Check other work by Joe Berkeley here
Photography by Christian Kozowyk
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