The Marquette County Sheriff’s Office is mourning the loss of one of its own this week.

Corrections K-9 Deputy Tucker, who helped the sheriff’s office detect drugs that inmates attempted to smuggle into the jail, passed away Monday after an inoperable tumor on the dog’s heart caused his health to deteriorate significantly.

Sgt. Kate Bonifas was the 4-year-old golden retriever’s handler, and she made the difficult decision to have him humanely euthanized to ease his pain, according to an MCSO Facebook post.

Marquette County Sheriff Greg Zyburt said K-9 Deputy Tucker was important, not just because he kept the jail safer by detecting drugs before they became a problem in conjunction with the facility’s X-ray machine.

The friendly canine also had a positive impact on anyone who worked at the jail. He also acted as an MCSO public ambassador since he joined the department in 2019.

“He was a real asset for us — not only as a drug dog — he was a calming influence for employees,” Zyburt said. “What’s more calming than having a golden retriever wagging his tail and smiling at you when you are having a bad day?”

K-9 Deputy Tucker was not aggressive, Zyburt said. He even appeared with other officers at public events, and brightened everyone’s day.

“We brought him along when we rang the bell for the Salvation Army and any type of thing where we were working with kids. The public just loved him,” Zyburt said. “He’ll be dearly missed.”

He said the sheriff’s office may consider getting another K-9 deputy sometime in the future. But right now, the department needs time to process the loss.

“Thank you for your service to the Marquette County Jail and the Marquette County community,” the MCSO Facebook post said. “Job well done. Rest easy Deputy Tucker.”

We wish Tucker a safe journey across the rainbow bridge. It is never an easy choice when it comes to our beloved animals, but we believe Sgt. Bonifas did the right thing for Tucker, as painful as it may be. We’d like to say a final, “Thank you, good boy.”

— Marquette Mining Journal