By Suzie Ziegler
ALPHARETTA, Ga. — A pair of police K-9s in Georgia are now social media stars thanks to the antics of their handlers on TikTok.
According to CBS 46, K-9s Mattis and Raider, with handlers Sergeant Mark Tappan and Officer Phil Ritchey, have raised quite a following.
On TikTok, Mattis and Tappan have nearly 46 million likes and 2.5 million followers. Raider and Ritchey have a more modest 6.5 million likes and 420,000 followers.
“The dog immediately created a bridge between police and community,” Tappan told CBS 46.
Ritchey says he’s humbled by how much Raider has been a positive influence on the digital community.
“I’ve had people message me who have had thoughts about potentially ending their life, and they were kind of on the edge, but Raider was keeping them going,” Officer Ritchey said. “You can’t put a value on that.”
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