TAMPA, Fla. – For the first time in Florida, life-saving air medical care is available not just for people, but for K9s injured in the line of duty.

Through a new partnership between Tampa General Hospital’s Aeromed team and veterinary specialists in Manatee County, injured K9s can now receive advanced trauma care during helicopter transport, dramatically cutting down response times when every second counts.

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What we know:

The Aeromed team at Tampa General Hospital is now trained and equipped to treat and transport injured law enforcement K9s by air. The program makes TGH the first in Florida, and the fourth in the nation, to offer this level of pre-hospital emergency care for police dogs.

Specialized K9 medical kits are now stored on each Aeromed helicopter. Flight nurses and paramedics have also trained law enforcement officers, fire rescue crews and EMS personnel across multiple counties in canine life support.

The partnership includes the Veterinary Medical Center at Lakewood Ranch, where critically injured K9s can be transported for advanced care.

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The backstory:

The effort began after a K9 in Highlands County was seriously injured during a mission. With no veterinarian immediately available, deputies had to drive the dog nearly 50 minutes to Polk County for treatment.

Flight nurse Donny Richardson with Tampa General Hospital realized there was a major gap in emergency care for law enforcement K9s. While military working dogs have established trauma protocols, similar pre-hospital systems did not exist in the civilian world until recently.

Richardson sought out training through Tampa Fire Rescue at MacDill Air Force Base and began building a civilian K9 trauma response program from the ground up.

How does the program work?

Training includes the use of a highly advanced canine medical simulator named “Hero,” a $33,000 trainer modeled after U.S. military K9 Astra, who served in Afghanistan. The simulator can bleed, breathe and replicate traumatic injuries, allowing crews to practice advanced treatment techniques.

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According to Richardson, the philosophy is simple: A heart is a heart, whether human or canine. 

Since launching the initiative, the Aeromed team has:

• Trained TGH Aeromed staff in Hillsborough, Highlands, Polk and Charlotte counties.
• Certified about half a dozen fire rescue agencies in the state.
• Certified 20 sheriff’s offices across Florida.

The program also includes the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office.

Last month, their skills were put to the test through the Manatee County Sheriff’s Offices Mass Casualty Incident Drill. The TGH Aeromed helicopter was staged at Mosquito Control. East Manatee Fire Rescue coordinated the flight takeoff and landing.

“We gave one of the deputies the simulator and the aircraft came, and he came running out with that simulator in both hands,” TGH Aeromed Flight Paramedic James Hutson said. “Our crews had no idea the receiving hospital had no idea. Everybody thought this was a Life Flight.”

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Why you should care:

Law enforcement K9s are often deployed into high-risk situations, from suspect apprehensions to narcotics detection and search operations. In trauma cases, minutes can determine survival.

With helicopter transport and advanced life support on board, response times that once took nearly an hour by patrol car can now be reduced to minutes.

Dr. Devon Diaz, a critical care specialist at the Veterinary Medical Center at Lakewood Ranch, called the partnership “amazing,” saying it allows injured K9s to receive advanced treatment faster than ever before.

The center is one of only three VEX-certified emergency and critical care facilities in Florida.

What’s next:

The TGH team plans to continue training agencies across the state and expand instruction beyond Florida, with upcoming training sessions scheduled in Kentucky. Diaz is also helping advance trauma standards nationwide through the rollout of the Veterinary Advanced Trauma Life Support (VetATLS) course later this year.

They swim with paddle-like tails, climb trees using hooked claws and hunt on land. Nile monitor lizards, powerful carnivores that can grow longer than six feet, are spreading through South Florida, earning a reputation from wildlife officials as one of the most dangerous invasive reptiles in the state.

Data show sightings have grown significantly in recent years, particularly in the Florida Peninsula, where entire neighborhoods in Cape Coral are now considered their established habitat.

According to EDDMapS data, Lee County, in the Tampa Bay area, leads the state with 1,616 reported sightings, followed by Palm Beach County with 299, Miami-Dade with 76, and Broward with 68.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission classified the Nile monitor as an invasive species and added it to Florida’s Prohibited species list in April 2021.

Where do Nile monitors come from? And how did they get to Florida? 

The Nile monitor is a semi-aquatic lizard native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is the largest lizard species in Africa, and according to the U.S. Geological Survey, the largest and most dangerous non-native lizard established in the United States.

Adults can stretch more than 7.5 feet long and weigh over 20 pounds, according to USGS. FWC said a typical adult in Florida averages about 5 feet and roughly 15 pounds.

They’re olive green to black with yellow striping on the head and jaw. Their tails are long and flattened like a paddle, which experts say helps them swim. They can stay underwater for 12 to 15 minutes and are just as comfortable climbing trees as they are moving through canals.

USGS said they’re also smart, adaptable and highly mobile, traits that make invasive species especially difficult to control.

In Africa, Nile monitors are found throughout much of the continent, especially near rivers, wetlands and lakes.

In Florida, wildlife officials believe most populations stem from the pet trade.

According to FWC and USGS, monitors likely arrived through escaped or intentionally released pets. They can break out of cages using their claws or push open enclosures. Some may have escaped during hurricanes that damaged reptile facilities. Others may have been released when they became too large or difficult to handle.

Once established near canals and waterways, they found ideal habitat. South Florida’s extensive canal system essentially acts like a highway network for a semi-aquatic reptile, experts say.

Why are Nile monitors considered dangerous?

Nile monitors are powerful wild predators that are generally not aggressive toward people unless cornered, wildlife experts said.

FWC described them as “generalist feeders,” meaning they eat almost anything they can overpower. That includes fish, frogs, turtles, snakes, birds and their eggs, small mammals and even young crocodiles.

Because they raid nests, they pose a risk to protected species such as sea turtles, gopher tortoises, burrowing owls and the American crocodile, according to FWC and USGS.

USGS noted their size and defensive behavior make them potentially dangerous to pets and, if cornered, to humans. They can bite with strong jaws, slash with sharp claws or whip their muscular tails.

FWC warned residents not to attempt to capture them.

In Cape Coral, where the largest known population exists, residents have reported monitors digging burrows along canal banks and roaming residential streets.

“There are a lot of invasive monitors, especially in our neighborhood,” Cape Coral resident Jack Schwartz told local television station WZVN on Feb. 20. 

Alane Passero described one running inside her home.

“[Out of the] corner of my eye, I see this huge monster running in my house straight to the back door. The nails are clacking on the floor. I’m screaming my head off,” she said.

Florida Nile monitors vs. green iguanas 

South Florida residents are used to seeing green iguanas, especially after cold snaps. But Nile monitors are a different animal.

Green iguanas are mostly plant-eaters. Nile monitors are carnivores that actively hunt vertebrate prey.

Monitors are bulkier, with longer necks, narrower snouts and thicker, more muscular tails. They also have a blue tongue, a distinctive trait noted by USGS.

And while iguanas can grow large, no native or commonly seen lizard in Florida approaches the Nile monitor’s size and strength.

Where are Nile monitor sightings growing the most in Florida?

According to EDDMapS:

• Lee County: 1,616 sightings
• Palm Beach County: 299
• Miami-Dade: 76
• Broward: 68