Forrest County Sheriff's K9 officer Abby Jo retires, trains her replacement

Abby Jo worked hard during her 8 years as a search and rescue officer for the Forrest County Sheriff's Office.

In her time with the department, the K9 officer has found a number of lost children, mentally impaired adults and other people who have been reported missing.

The sheriff's office recently held a ceremony honoring the bloodhound for her service and unveiling a plaque dedicated to Abby Jo.

“Abby has been a great asset for the Forrest County Sheriff’s Office," Sheriff Charlie Sims said. "You hope you never need her services, but the comfort of knowing that she was there and prepared to handle that type of situation has been a blessing."

Abby Jo will live the rest of her life in comfort with the family of her partner Reserve Deputy Nate Mosely.

Bloodhounds are trained to locate people by playing games of hide and seek where she is given the scent of one person who is then mixed in with groups of people who go in different directions. She then has to track down the person who belongs to the scent, Mosely said.

Leading up to her retirement, Mosely and Abby Jo have been training her replacement, another bloodhound named Juno.

"She gets to retire into a loving home where she will be well taken care of," Sims said. "We are excited to see Juno step in and continue that service to our agency and the citizens of Forrest County."

This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: Forrest County K9 officer Abby Jo retires after 8 years of service