ORLANDO, Fla. – It’s the other side of the story behind those amazing police dogs, known by their handlers as K-9 Units.
The job is dangerous for the dogs and, like our first responders, the dogs are often injured in the line of duty.
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And News 6 discovered there is a primary go-to vet for so many of the K-9s in Central Florida: Underhill Animal Hospital.
Longtime owner Dr. Dan Hill founded the animal hospital 41 years ago.
Today his daughter, Dr. Heidi Hill, who recently graduated from veterinary school, works by his side.
How did Underhill become the go-to for police dogs?
“Well just over time,” Dan said. “And back in the day, 40 years ago when I first started working with police dogs, we had no emergency facility facilities, we had to be there at 3 o’clock in the morning. If there was a bloat or a gastric torsion where the stomach twisted, we had to go there and open that dog up and release that bloat and get them to live.”
Heidi said word quickly spread.
“Once another department got added, the others started following,” Heidi said. “Three counties and 23 departments, starting with Orlando PD, Osceola, Seminole, UCF, TSA, Homeland Security.”
Dan said he learned from the K-9 handlers as much as they’ve learned from him.
“I went on patrol with these dogs,” Dan said. “I saw the pressures, I saw that how they got those shoulder injuries. Seeing the dogs in action is the best way to learn what they’re going through.”
“I love to work with them,” he added. “They are a great dogs and great, great handlers.”
Underhill has its own in-house laboratory, surgery center and X-ray machine for daily use and emergencies.
“We will do our complete physical exam, we will monitor and evaluate for any kind of trauma that they have, radiographs immediately blood work immediately,” Heidi said.
Dan said Underhill Animal Hospital is known for a first in Florida: a separate law enforcement entrance - a side door - where handlers can bring their dogs any time of day or night to care for them, cool them down or clean them up after a track.
Dan plans to retire in the next couple of years and hand over the practice to Heidi, who will continue her father’s legacy.
“I feel like it’s instilled in my DNA - veterinary medicine - I’ve been watching it my whole life,” Heidi said.
Heidi and Dan are assisted by Dr. Kristin Wolfenden, Dr. Bianca Zayas and Dr. Kelley Cole Stanko.
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