Former Denver K9 handler calls for dog to be retired, claims he's owed backpay
K9 handler Luke Miederhoff is missing his best friend.
"He's a fun dog, he's goofy," Miederhoff said.
For the last two and a half years, Miederhoff has worked with German Shepherd Dodger, detecting narcotics in the juvenile jail system, for Denver Metro Protective Services, a private security company based in Aurora.
"He's like a pet that goes to work with you and when we're working, they're working very hard and we take is very seriously and we obviously do what's necessary but at the end of the day we go home and hang out all day," Miederhoff said.
But in January, Miederhoff says paychecks started bouncing.
"It was a repetitive issue where we wouldn't get checks for the week we were supposed to and it would happen afterwards. And so we weren't getting paid on time so it was causing a lot of financial strains on the employees and a lot of employees left," he said.
Miederhoff says 20 employees left as a result. This month, he followed.
"Not knowing if you're going to get paid the following week is a problem," Miederhoff said.
According to the Fair Labor Standards Act -- a federal law regulating employee pay -- K9 handlers are required to be compensated for at-home care.
"Walking the dog, training the dog, taking the dog out, grooming the dog, housing the dog, feeding the dog, all the stuff that are technically considered part of the job you're supposed to be compensated for," Miederhoff said.
But Miederhoff says DMPS never paid him for that work.
In addition to the pay issues, before he resigned, Miederhoff took Dodger to a vet who recommended the five-year-old dog be retired based on severe kennel anxiety and related aggression.
"The dog had moved the kennel ten feet and removed all the skin off his nose, fractured a tooth, and all the pads on his feet were tore up because he was trying to escape the kennel," Miederhoff said.
Miederhoff brought the vet's letter to DMPS, but says he was ignored. Instead, they came to get Dodger.
"I didn't want to see him be put in a kennel and I was concerned for the safety of my dog," Miederhoff said.
Miederhoff says he initially refused to have Dodger be taken to a kennel. When DMPS threatened legal action, he agreed to turn Dodger over to his former partner. That situation is only temporary, and Miederhoff fears the worst if Dodger is not allowed to retire.
"If you have a high-anxiety dog, something could happen where you have a bite incident, you have a dog who could be euthanized," Miederhoff said.
An attorney for Denver Metro Protective Services sent CBS News Colorado a statement saying they paid Miederhoff all wages owed, and calling his claims "false and misleading."
The company says it has a process for retiring dogs in conjunction with its trainer and veterinarian. They go on to say, "Mr. Miederhoff apparently developed a relationship with Dodger that was inappropriate for a working animal and handler. He then resigned, ignored DMPS policies and processes, refused to return Dodger to DMPS for a full evaluation, and resorted to defaming DMPS on social media."
