K9 Hurricane is a former Special Operations Canine of the United States Secret Service.
K9 Hurricane is a 15 year old Belgian Malinois recognized for his bravery and valor, with an all black coat and 4 titanium teeth.
K9 Hurricane joined the USSS Emergency Response Team Tactical Canine Unit in November of 2012 and retired after four years of service. During his time in service Hurricane was awarded the USSS Award for Merit, the DHS Award for Valor, the PDSA Order of Merit, AMC Top Dog in 2016, and is the first dog in history to receive the Animal’s in War and Peace Distinguished Service Medal (2022) which landed him in the Guinness Book of World Records!
On November 3, 2015, K9 Hurricane and his handler, Marshall Mirarchi, were awarded the Secretary’s Award for Valor by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson. The award was given to recognize their efforts to neutralize an individual who had jumped the White House fence in 2014 (see videos below).
Thanks to the Animal Medical Center in NYC awarding K9 Hurricane Top Dog in 2016, all of Hurricane’s medical bills in retirement have been fully covered.* This is not the norm for a retired working dog, as dogs typically do not receive paid medical care in retirement. Marshall knew this gift from AMC was something Hurricane and he needed to honor by paying it forward to help other retired dogs receive this same type of care. That is when “Hurricane’s Heroes” was born.
You can read articles about K9 Hurricane as published in Good Morning America, Fox News, ABC News, USA Today, The New York Times, Men's Journal, and more! He has also made appearances on Good Morning Britain, Sky News and BBC Radio.
*Huge thank you to Paws of Honor who now covers the bulk of Hurricane’s medical bills when we are unable to make the trip to AMC. (2021)
Awards
United States Secret Service Merit Award (2014) | DHS Secretary's Award of Valor (2015) | Animal Medical Center Top Dog Award (2016) | PDSA Order of Merit (2019) | AWP Distinguished Service Award (2022) | Guinness Book of World Records (2023)
"Hurricane showed extreme discipline and focus from day one of his training, and we knew he was going to excel in performance at the highest levels. I believe the intruder would have hoped Hurricane was not on duty because from that day on, he will know to not mess with a man's best friend,” -Deputy Chief Richard Macauley, United States Secret Service, Special Operations Division.