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Spike's K9 Fund was founded in 2014 by James Hatch, a retired Special Warfare Operator.
As a K9 handler on several deployments, James’ life was regularly spared by the work of K9s – one of the most memorable was Spike. And on James’ final deployment, the night he was critically wounded, a K9 Remco spared James’ life while losing his own. From that evening on, James oriented his life around the training, care and preservation of working dogs.
To keep our operating costs at a minimum, we do not have a physical office or storefront and our team works remotely. We use the address for Offbase Supply Co. because we are required to have an address for tax purposes and to send/receive mail. Offbase Supply Co. has been a dedicated supporter of ours since inception. They stock all of our merchandise and handle the fulfillment on all of our online purchases and we only pay for postage.
We serve certified working and retired K9sunder the service of the military, law enforcement, search and rescue, and other public safety organizations by purchasing top of the line gear to keep them safe and ready for peak operation, running schools to enhance their training, and paying for critical medical treatment to help them return to work or to live out the rest of their days in retirement in good health.
We can assist working K9 teams with equipment needs, medical expenses (case dependent), and critical training. Our campaigns help provide life-saving protection, care, and training for working dogs.
Unfortunately, this type of work is outside the scope of our mission. We provide protection, medical care, and training to active and retired working dogs that are already attached to LEO, Military, or SAR handlers. We do not work with service or therapy dogs. We also do not train the dogs ourselves or rescue from shelters.
Occasionally, we do try to assist with rehoming when we have supporters that would be a good fit for a retired working dog or their breeds but this is outside of our mission and not our top priority.
Click Here to subscribe to our newsletter to stay up to date on all things Spike's K9 Fund: events, news, beneficiary stories & more.
Unfortunately not all departments receive the same funding and support and may be unable to allocate their funding to their K-9 units. At Spike's we try to assist in filling the gaps where we can.
View our Board Of Directors Here. Each member of our Board is a volunteer.
You can support our mission by:
Setting up a Monthly Donation
Donating towards one of our campaigns -
Sharing our organization on social media: Facebook and Instagram . This helps us expand our reach and hopefully find new K9s in need of assistance.
Starting an online fundraiser
Volunteering at a school or event. We can add you to our list of interested volunteers and we can contact you when there is a need in your area. If interested please contact support@spikesk9fund.org.
We are grateful for your sponsorship! You can sponsor a vest here:
Protect a K9 with ballistic protection
Or you can email support@spikesk9fund.org
Click here to edit, update, or cancel your monthly doonation.
85%
For every dollar donated, .85 goes directly to the Dogs we serve.
In addition to ballistic vests, we also provide heat alarms for patrol vehicles, harnesses, ear and eye protection, life-saving medical treatment, and quality training.
You can learn more about our services provided by checking out our Campaigns:
Click here to give monthly
When donating to one of our campaigns, you can credit your donation to a specific team or fundraiser.
Click here to donate to the K9 Kijger Ballistic vest campaign
Click here to donate to the K9 Piper Kit Campaign
Click here to donate to the Combat Dog Diesel Medical Campaign
Spike’s K9 Fund
5760 Northampton Blvd #118
Virginia Beach, VA 23455
Yes! When making a donation, you have the option to dedicate your donation in honor or in memory of someone.
Click here to donate
Receipts are mailed out monthly for donations made via check; if donating through Classy or Shopify, you will receive a donation receipt immediately after processing.
By January 31st in the year following the donation.
Please send a message to support@spikesk9fund.org and we would be more than happy to assist you.
You will need to submit the donation to your employer for instructions and verification of matching.
Please contact emily@spikesk9fund.org for more information regarding our endowment campaign and how you can support our longterm goals.
Click Here to view the 2024 Donor Report.
We can assist certified K9 teams with equipment needs, medical expenses (case dependent), and training schools.
If you would like to complete an application for assistance, please see the applications below.
K9 Krijger Ballistic Vest Campaign (SAR vest as well)
Combat Dog Diesel Medical Campaign (retired assistance as well)
K9 Piper Kit Campaign (GPS Collars, Eye Pro, Ear Pro, Heat Alarms)
Then scroll down to 'Start Fundraising' and select the appropriate campaign.
Yes. Per our charter, all dogs must be certified to receive support. If your dog is not yet certified but will be certified soon, you can submit an application and email support@spikesk9fund.org to inform us of the pending certification.
We require dogs to be at least 18 months of age to receive support with vests, but no minimum with the other requests. There is no age limit to receive support.
Through our Combat Dog Diesel Medical Campaign retired K9s can receive support for critical medical treatments to help them live out the rest of their days in retirement in good health.
Once these steps are completed you will be eligible on our waitlist to receive a vest.
If you are able to fundraise the full cost of the vest, you will be bumped to the top of our waitlist!
To view our Spike's School page Click Here
Yes, all K9s must be certified, active, and deployable members of a not-for-profit organization.
For SAR (Search and Rescue) K9s who are not yet certified but are close to achieving certification, teams may complete our Foundation Skills Assessment and send us their score prior to the course as a temporary qualification.
Some courses—such as our High Risk Deployment Course—require pre-approval and submission of a video demonstrating K9 obedience prior to the course start. Our Spike’s School Director will communicate any requirements well in advance.
Send your resume to support@spikesk9fund.org
If you’re interested in developing a new course, we’d love to see a general outline of what that might look like.
Click Here to complete an application or to submit interest in hosting a school.
All schools that we host come at no cost to the handler.
Each course varies slightly, but most require a long line and a tracking harness or vest. If your K9 has received a K9 Storm vest through our program, they are required to wear it during training. We have K9 Storm tracking harnesses we can loan for training. About 30 days before your course begins, our Director will email a welcome packet with all course-specific equipment needs.
And of course—don’t forget to bring your motivation to learn... and leave your ego at home!
We provide tuition sponsorship and lunch daily to keep our handlers fueled and focused. Lunch is often provided by generous local or national sponsors. However, lodging and travel expenses are the responsibility of the handler and/or their department.
If you cannot attend, you agree to notify Spike's School Director before the course begins so that another student can fill your spot. If you fail to do so, you understand that you may be responsible for the fees associated with this course. If you do not notify Spike's School Director that you will not attend and do not show up to the course, you understand that you will not be eligible for future support from Spike's K9 Fund.
We believe it is important to be prepared for the job at hand. As a requirement for each course sponsorship, we are asking every applicant, with their K9 on lead, to complete a 1-mile run while wearing a duty kit(or something similar in weight, i.e., rucksack, backpack, etc.) in 12 minutes or less for law enforcement handlersand 20 minutes or less for SAR handlers. Each applicant will be tested on the first morning of the workshop before the course begins.
If unable to pass the fitness test, the applicant is responsible for Spike’s School fees of up to $425, which must be paid on the first morning of the workshop.
Yes! Audit spots are limited but available for most courses. They’re a great option for new handlers or department leaders who want to observe training methods.
Spike’s Schools are designed for any certified, active, and deployable dog within a not-for-profit organization. This includes working dog teams in law enforcement, military, and search and rescue. Personal protection dogs or civilian working dogs affiliated with for-profit businesses are not permitted.
Yes! All handlers who complete the full course and fill out the post-course survey will receive a certificate of completion.
Each registration covers one handler/K9 team. If you'd like to bring an additional K9, please contact us first to confirm availability and suitability.
