Snohomish County Sheriff's K-9 exposed to fentanyl, revived with Narcan

EVERETT, Wash. - A Snohomish County Sheriff's Office Drug Task Force K-9 is recovering after being exposed to fentanyl while searching a home in Everett.

On May 11, K-9 Sully and his handler entered a home near Merrill Creek Parkway to help with a search warrant. Sully is trained in methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin, and indicated several areas inside the apartment had traces of drugs. 

The search of the apartment took about 10 minutes and then K-9 Sully went back to the patrol vehicle as his handler conducted a second search. 

Sully was in the vehicle for about 15 minutes when his handler noticed him unresponsive in his kennel. 

His handler immediately grabbed Sully and tapped on his face several times to wake him up, but Sully remained unresponsive. 

Sully's handler grabbed Narcan, a nasal spray that reverses the effects of an overdose, and used it on the dog. Sully had two doses before his handler called for backup from other Task Force units on scene.

Sully then got a third dose before being rushed to an emergency vet.

His handler said he started waking up when he got to the vet. Medical staff at the vet checked Sully's vitals and monitored his state before he was released.

The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office said Sully is "very tired but is doing well." 

"Certainly a very scary incident. We are aware that the danger of fentanyl exposure and so our detectives, especially our task force detectives with the canines, do carry extra doses of Narcan for the dogs. But we've never had this happen before," said Courtney O'Keefe with the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office. 

A large amount of drugs were seized from the apartment, including cocaine, meth, heroin and fentanyl. 

A 5-year-old was also found to be living inside the apartment, so Child Protective Services was called.

In the fall of 2022, the Skagit County Interlocal Drug Enforcement Unit (SCIDEU) identified the home in Everett as a drug trafficking base that supplied a "substantial amount" of fentanyl pills, meth and cocaine to residents in Skagit County. Several suspects were getting their supply from this home, including pastor Steve Parker, who was arrested and charged for possession and sale of controlled substances.   

During the search of the home, SCIDEU said they seized half a million fentanyl-laced pills, 22 pounds of meth, six pounds of cocaine, nearly a pound of heroin and over a pound of fentanyl powder.