HAMPTON, N.H. – Copper Robinson is counting himself lucky after a New Hampshire police detective pulled him in a few weeks ago when he was found loitering near a police department — on all four paws.

The dog was found in Hampton, New Hampshire, about 45 miles northeast of Boston. It was early morning, July 6, according to Hampton police Capt. Anthony Azarian, when the German shepherd/mix pup was spotted looking lost, hanging around the municipal parking lot adjacent to the police station.

“It was 12:40 a.m.,” Azarian said. “The detective was coming back from patrol when he saw the dog with no leash, no tags and no one nearby. The detective scooped him up and brought him to the station.”

According to Azarian, bringing strays into the police station isn’t a rarity. When officers notice a wayward dog with no signs of an owner nearby, they often figure it’s a resident’s pet that has wandered off. People looking for their lost animals usually drop by the Police Department, Azarian said, and if the dog’s already at the department, owner and pet can be quickly reunited.

That wouldn’t happen this time round, Azarian said.

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Dog cleaned up, taken to the vet

Once in the station, the pup spent the night being visited by midnight shift officers in the dispatch center, where Detective Harlee Felch was working. She noticed the puppy was friendly, but thin and not looking healthy. So she gave him a good meal of chicken and rice, then set to combing out some nasty pests.

“Detective Felch noticed he had ticks, which she removed,” Azarian said. “He looked malnourished; there were signs of neglect. Detective Felch initially named him Outcast. We kept him overnight in dispatch, and the next day, Anthony Palmisano, our animal control officer, took him to the vet.”

At Health and Wellness Animal Hospital in Hampton Falls, the pup got the once over. He was cleaned up, Azarian said, received all his shots, was tested and treated for anything affecting his health, and it was estimated the dog was about seven months old. He stayed there for about a week.

Unable to be reunited with owner

Meanwhile, back at the station detectives tried to reunite the dog with its owner, according to Azarian, but they were unsuccessful in facilitating that reunion. After investigating and finding a phone number for the owner, police determined that the owner lived several states away and that the owner opted to not return for the pup.

Now, the name Outcast appeared even more appropriate, but not for long.

“The detective who found the dog agreed to foster him until he could be adopted,” Azarian said. “And he’d bring him into the station, so we all knew him.”

Being with Outcast isn’t a difficult duty, according to Azarian, pretty much everyone who came in contact with the pup grew attached.

“He’s friendly, a great dog,” Azarian said. “He’s the kind of dog you can cuddle.”

Finding a forever home

In no time at all, Outcast had good prospects for his forever home with Hampton Sgt. Matthew Robinson, who’d developed a soft spot the first time they met in the dispatch center. The midnight shift on-duty sergeant, Robinson was at the station the night the dog arrived. When he learned Outcast needed a permanent home, he stepped up.

“In March I adopted, Denver, a street dog from Aruba,” Robinson said. “They’re about the same age and they even look alike. I brought him home to see if he’d get along with Denver, and they’d got along great; they play together all day.”

As for how Outcast came to be Copper – the perfect name for a police officer’s trusty canine – that piece of serendipity came from officer Haley Magee, Robinson said.

“I love the name; love the pun,” Robinson said. “And I’d like to thank all the people who’ve helped out with Copper, including the detective who found him. And officer Magee’s been dog sitting while I’m at work, and the dispatchers have helped out watching him. Everyone here has been great helping out because we’re all putting in so much overtime.”

Going from a hungry, tick-infested, neglected stray roaming the streets of Hampton Beach, to a pet beloved by Hampton’s police officers is a far cry from what could have ended quite sadly for the puppy.

Instead, as Police Chief Alex Reno posted on Facebook: “Ladies and gentlemen, please say hello to the newest member of the Hampton PD family… Copper!”

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