K-9 Dexter received a bulletproof vest Wednesday from a U.S. Army veteran’s nonprofit, marking the second time a weapons-detecting dog at Lehigh Valley Health Network has been outfitted with protective equipment through the K9 Kop Project.

Vickie Richards, the organization’s founder, presented the custom-fitted vest to Dexter during a ceremony at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Carbon. Dexter is handled by Ed Mayer Jr.

K-9 Cisco, handled by Casey O’Connell, received a vest through the same nonprofit previously.

Both dogs are trained to detect firearms and other weapons at LVHN facilities, which are part of Jefferson Health.

What Richards expected to be a one-time project has expanded considerably since she launched the K9 Kop Project in 2015.

“This initially started out just as one project with five interns throughout the valley,” Richards said. “We actually purchased Remy — that was Allentown’s police K-9 — and we had a banquet, we had the public come out and meet Remy, and I thought I was done. And then the next thing you know, about three months later, I started having officers come and say, ‘Hey, can you help us?’ And that’s kind of where it all started.”

Remy, the first K-9 the organization helped equip, died two weeks ago, Richards said.

Over 11 years, the K9 Kop Project has provided approximately 30 vests to law enforcement and service canines. The nonprofit also supplies seminars, harnesses, leashes, collars, vehicle inserts and climate-control equipment for K-9 patrol vehicles.

“Vests are just one part of what we’ll do for a canine officer,” Richards said.

Identifying dogs in need can require persistence. Departments often redirect the nonprofit’s offers toward other agencies, Richards said.

“A lot of times we will put the word out that we have money that we’d like to donate to police departments, and we actively go out and look for departments that have a need,” she said. “But sometimes it’s a little bit like pulling teeth because everybody says, ‘Oh, save that for the other canine officer. They need things more than I do.’”

Once a recipient is identified, Richards connects handlers with Line of Defense, a manufacturer she described as producing military-grade protective equipment used worldwide. All vests are custom-fitted to the dog’s measurements and take four to six months to produce. The K9 Kop Project purchases all equipment directly rather than issuing checks to departments.

“We do not give checks to any departments or agencies,” Richards said. “We make sure that we purchase everything and we give it to them in real time so they can have it immediately.”

For O’Connell, the donation carries meaning that extends past the equipment.

“It’s a very humbling donation that both of us are very thankful for because Vickie has provided us the tools needed to ensure our dogs can work effectively and safely in ensuring patients, visitors and other colleagues throughout the hospital can get the same safety that we expect from our dogs,” O’Connell said. “It’s very welcoming knowing that there’s so many people out there that we have no idea who they are that are willing to contribute to Vickie’s nonprofit to ensure we get the proper tools and equipment needed to ensure that we can have our dogs perform to the best of their ability.”

Cisco and Dexter work opposite shifts, with coverage spanning from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. with an hour of overlap each day. The handlers rotate among 17 LVHN facilities, searching bags, belongings and people and walking hospital hallways to maintain a working presence throughout each shift.

“We primarily like to spend a lot of our time in the ERs,” O’Connell said, “just because trauma’s coming in with violent crimes or car accidents — that’s where people are bound to have stuff the most because it’s an emergent situation that they’re not prepared to go into.”

The dogs’ presence in the department also offers something less tangible.

“Just having the presence alone with the dogs, we find a lot of people are relieved by it because it provides a sense of safety,” O’Connell said.

The dogs’ training spans approximately nine months and is built around positive reinforcement. Handlers introduce a favored toy, then gradually incorporate scent detection until the animal can locate a target weapon through competing odors across spaces ranging from small rooms to large warehouses.

“Their ball is their paycheck, ultimately, and that’s their number one thing,” O’Connell said.

For Richards, who served in the U.S. Army before founding the project, the work reflects a commitment that followed her into civilian life.

“For me, it’s just been a wonderful way to be able to help K-9 officers who are in need with supplies and things, seminars, any type of things that they need to do their job every single day,” she said. “It’s been a real blessing to be able to go out and help spread the mission.”