ATHOL, Mass. -- Gronk will soon be tracking down criminals, sniffing for drugs and acting as the furry face of a Massachusetts police department.
No, not New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.
This Gronk is the Athol Police Department's new dog. The year-old German shepherd is undergoing a 14-week training program.
Chief Russell Kleber tells The Recorder (http://bit.ly/2rznwGh ) that Gronk will be the department's first K-9 officer in seven or eight years. He says he wanted to name the dog after a Boston sports figure and recalled that the real Gronk has a connection to town.
After attending a nearby charity event in February, the Patriots player stopped by an Athol Subway shop and ordered a footlong chicken, cheese and guacamole sandwich that the restaurant's owner dubbed the Big Subkowski.
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Information from: The (Greenfield, Mass.) Recorder, http://www.recorder.com