By Joanna Putman
Police1
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles City Council voted 9-5 on Tuesday to approve the donation of two police dogs from Adlerhorst International, a company that had previously sparked concern due to its name’s historical association with Adolf Hitler and Nazi history, The Eastsider reported.
The issue first arose in June when Councilman Bob Blumenfield, who is Jewish, requested a delay in the vote for further scrutiny due to concerns about the name “Adlerhorst,” which is linked to a World War II bunker used by Hitler, according to the report. Blumenfield later reversed his stance after meeting with the company’s owner and conducting further research.
“I could not vote in favor of doing business with, or even accepting a donation from, a company that was intentionally glorifying Hitler,” Blumenfield wrote in a letter to the Public Safety Committee. However, after speaking with the owner, he was assured the company’s name was based on the bloodline of the original dog that inspired the business, with no intended connection to Hitler or Nazi ideology, according to the report.
Blumenfield also consulted the Anti-Defamation League, which confirmed no known ties between Adlerhorst International and extremist groups.
The donation, valued at $26,900, will replace two retiring K-9s in the LAPD’s Metropolitan Division K-9 Platoon, according to the report. The L.A. Police Foundation facilitated the donation.
Adlerhorst International, founded in 1976, is one of the largest K-9 training facilities in the U.S., supplying dogs to over 300 police agencies.