'Total package': At-risk shelter pit bull breaks stigma and convention to join K-9 drug unit

Victoria Costa couldn’t believe her eyes.

One day in November 2023, then serving as a volunteer with Minneapolis Animal Care & Control, she was scrolling Facebook and noticed an intriguing—and impeccably timed—post. K-9 Protectors, a non-profit dedicated to training dogs for police work, was seeking candidates who met specific requirements: under 3 years old, good-natured, and with an intense toy drive. It sounded just like someone she knew: "I was like, 'That is absolutely Ron,'" Costa tells GOOD, nodding to the adorable, black-and-white pit bull she’d grown to know so well.

Today, after nearly two years of extensive training, good fortune, and the dedication of so many compassionate people, a dog once slated for euthanasia has a job few outsiders would have predicted: sniffing out narcotics with the police department in Delran, New Jersey.

"It’s my favorite [shelter] success story by far," Costa says. And it’s a personal one: "My heart is with bully breeds. I love working them, especially in the shelter. Their stays are typically longer, and they tend to get higher levels of kennel stress after being there for so long." (According to The Pit Bull Coalition, 4.5 million of the 90 million dogs in the United States are "pit bull-type dogs." Additionally, in 2023, 3.2 million dogs entered North American shelters, and roughly 22% were pit bulls. Of the 180,000 dogs euthanized, they represented approximately 40%.)

Ron. courtesy of K-9 Protectors

"The toy is their reward."

Costa was immediately drawn to the bubbly and butt-wagging Ron, who arrived with two other dogs named Harry and Hermione—an apparent Harry Potter reference. But over time, Ron, like many other shelter dogs, started to grow restless in his kennel. While still up for adoption, he was initially advertised as suited to a sporting-type home—guardians who could meet his exercise needs and satisfy his toy drive.

"You could tell he loved to work, loved dogs, was fiercely loyal, and loved people," she says. "He would make a great dog in not your typical pet home. He’ll sleep and snuggle, but he doesn’t want to do that all day. At one point, after he was there for so long, his kennel stress started to get worse—he constantly wanted toys and was chewing on the leash."

But Costa hadn’t initially considered a K-9 landing spot for her canine friend. "There wasn’t really a place—at least widespread—for rescue dogs to get into this certain work," she says. "I knew of K-9 Protectors because another MACC dog, a Belgian Malinois, went through that program as well."

After inquiring with K-9 Protectors, she learned about the stringent tests Ron—who, by the way, per his DNA test, is 100% American Bully—would have to pass to be accepted. "With detection work, the toy is their reward," she says, "so it needs to be a dog that is going to work for whatever they’re being trained on in detection, knowing that the toy is the ultimate prize."

It was daunting—but fascinating—work. Police dogs need to prove their drive but also their "environmental stability." After all, you can’t have a K-9 get spooked by an emergency siren or the fireworks at a Fourth of July event. But Ron seemed to possess both qualities, and as his euthanasia deadline approached, Costa kicked into gear, working with fellow volunteers to film the required tests and solicit feedback from K-9 Protectors. (Minneapolis Animal Care & Control was also "supportive of the process.")

Victoria and Ron.courtesy of Victoria Costa

Another pit bull breaking another stereotype.

"A lot of dogs can go look and find a toy within 30 seconds," she notes. "But they said, 'Try to get this hunt test to have him actively searching for at least two minutes and see if he’ll still pursue the toy.' Most dogs out in a field will get distracted by goose poop or something and forget they’re still searching for a toy. He searched past that point—for three or four minutes, he never gave up."

K-9 Protectors didn’t have space for Ron right away—but luckily there was workaround to that problem via Minnesota’s Unbreakabull Pit Bull Rescue, who stepped in on his euthanasia deadline day. The organization was compelled to help, finding a foster for this Certified Good Boy to give them extra training time. “[That allowed us to] fully test him for our program," says Christie Marrano, a trainer with K-9 Protectors. “He performed phenomenally on all tests, and we took him into our care. He’s very well-rounded. When it’s work time, he is intense, focused, and driven. Around people, he’s sweet, affectionate, and thinks everyone he meets is his new best friend."

Despite his obvious sweet demeanor and incredible toy drive, it wasn’t easy to get Ron placed with the right police force—partly because of all the red tape, and possibly because of unfair stereotypes that continue to linger against dogs who look like him. "Some departments don’t want to take on a bully breed or have regulations against it," says Costa. "A lot of departments have restrictions where they don’t take donated rescue dogs."

And the numbers for pit bulls in these roles are incredibly low. While it’s hard to find solid statistics for how many K-9 bullies are out there, it’s safe to say you’re way more likely to see a Belgian Malinois or German Shepherd jumping out of a police car than a blocky-headed pup.

K-9 Protectors say that "working line shepherds and mals" are most likely to have the necessary qualities for police work, but they don’t discriminate based on breed. Funny enough, the organization trained a K-9 for the Middlesex County, New Jersey Sheriff’s Office that turned out to be 50% American Bully—but they didn’t know it until later, when the handler ran a DNA test. (The dog would largely pass, at least visually, for some kind of Shepherd.)

"There are a few other pit [K-9s] I have seen online, specifically two in Pennsylvania," says Marrano. "There are a handful out there, but it’s definitely not the norm."

Ron. courtesy of K-9 Protectors

"This dog is the best."

Eventually, they found the perfect home for this hard-working pittie: the Delran Police Department, which had been considering starting up a K-9 unit, partly due to the insistence of patrolman Tyler Malia, who is now Ron’s handler.

"I started pushing for a dog two-ish years ago—just asking relentlessly and pitching proposals and pitching how we could get a dog to the department," he says. "It was, 'Great ideas but not right now.' I stayed persistent with it. It’s an awesome tool to have a narcotics dog."

In July, after an explosive device was set off in Delran—an uncommon event in this small township of roughly 18,000 people—the FBI arrived with their own explosives and K-9. Malia says his department was impressed by that dog in action, giving them another bit of motivation.

Eventually, all the puzzle pieces fit together, and Malia found his wingman. But it’s not like he came into this situation as an overt pit bull advocate. He admits he’d had "zero experience" with the breed, having grown up mostly around small pups and even dealing with a fear of dogs for part of his earlier life. After marrying his wife, they brought home a beloved Labradoodle—one who now shares sofa real estate with Malia’s new pal.

Looking back, the patrolman has vivid memories of first meeting Ron during the National Night Event focused on community-policing awareness.

"That was the first initial meeting for all of us, to watch him work and put him in front of our administration, the police department, the town council, and to also see how he is in front of large crowds and with people," he says. "Before anyone got there, we got there first, and as soon as we walked over, he jumped up on me and was licking. I started petting him, and his whole body is wiggling. He’s so happy. It was immediately like, 'This dog is the best.'"

"I’ll tell ya right now, from meeting Ron, I don’t know why I ever overlooked pit bulls," he adds. "He’s the most loving, social, stable, family-oriented dog. Every day when we go home, he cuddles up on the couch with me, my wife, and our other dog. Ron’s the total package."

As of this writing, Malia’s only been working with Ron for six weeks—but that’s following a series of meetings at K-9 Protectors’ facility and the Middlesex County K-9 Academy, where he took a "crash course" in handling.

"Ron had already been certified and training for 18 months with K-9 Protectors, so he’s already a machine," he says, emphasizing that Ron is more than just a cute face. "We’ve actually used him quite a few times, and twice we’ve hit fairly significant arrests and seizures. He [actually] does work! He’s done a really good job."

Ron and Tyler at the swearing-in ceremony.courtesy of K-9 Protectors

"I just hold the leash."

The media attention, Malia says, has been "really overwhelming"—mostly in a positive way, including the widespread coverage of Ron’s official swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday at the Delran Township municipal building. Nonetheless, handfuls of hateful commenters do their best to make noise. "There’s the 1% of people on social media saying negative things about him because of his breed," he says. "It gets shared to one anti-pit page, and they all come crawling out. But it’s the 1%. You can barely see it unless you look for it."

"It’s been great to see the response from volunteers from both the shelter, the rescue, K-9 Protectors—everybody sort of rallying around him and celebrating him," adds Costa. "But unfortunately, there are a lot of hate groups out there that will target posts—they will search Facebook and Reddit and leave horrible comments. Some people’ve had German Shepherds or Malinois for years, and they’ll say, 'He’s gonna flunk out of the police program. He’ll never make it.’ Even though those comments are not as hateful, [they’re still] doubting him—and you just have to see him. It’s hard for a lot of people to shift their mindset to see these dogs in a community advocacy or working role. I think it’s about being able to accept something new."

Ultimately, Ron wouldn’t be in this unique position—breaking stereotypes and inspiring people to challenge conventions—if it weren’t for the valiant efforts of so many advocates. For just one dog to live, let alone thrive as a local celebrity, it often takes a ragtag team working behind the scenes. "I think Ron is an amazing dog," Costa says, "but there are so many dogs like Ron sitting in municipal shelters who unfortunately don’t always make it out."

In Ron’s case, it all comes down to what limits we impose—and why.

"When people think of bully breeds, they don’t always think of working dogs, but bully breeds actually make up some of the best working dogs, given that they’re so driven, fiercely loyal, and tenacious," Costa says. "I remember when I first reached out to K-9 Protectors, I thought, 'Will they even consider him, or will I just sound crazy even asking?' I knew he could do it, but even though their ad mentioned 'any breed,' you always worry about the bully-breed stereotypes: 'How do I pitch an American Bully with a euthanasia deadline as a strong K-9 candidate?' It’s one of those things where you just have to see him work and let that do the talking."

And there’s no mistaking that point. "I don’t really have to do much," says Malia. "I just hold the leash. Ron kind of speaks for himself in a way."

Ron. courtesy of Victoria Costa