3 Harris County Sheriff's Office K9 partners retire from service

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- What's a party without cake?

Three K9 partners that were recently retired from service with the Harris County Sheriff's Office spent the conclusion of Friday's ceremony eating cake.

The animals were celebrated for their work as scent trackers, explosives detectives and drug finders.

"Our four-legged partners function as a team with their handlers and are skilled assets who work tirelessly to help us apprehend wanted suspects, locate missing persons, identify explosives, and seize narcotics and contraband," said Sgt. Chris Moore, who serves as the trainer and lead supervisor for the agency's K9 Unit. "K9s Lucky, Gerard, and Rico were true partners in every sense of the word."

FROM 2019: 10 dogs and handlers become new crime fighting duos for Harris County

K9 Gerard

Gerard is a 12-year-old K9 trained to identify explosives and track a scent. He has worked alongside his handler, Deputy George Love, on 421 patrol deployments, 270 captures, and 110 explosive sweeps. In 2015, the Belgian Malinois and German Shepherd mix was named Explosive K9 of the Year and won first place in the explosive scramble during the K9 Olympics. In 2018, K9 Gerard and Deputy Love were honored by the 100 Club for apprehending a suspect who shot and wounded a Harris County Precinct 4 deputy constable. K9 Gerard has conducted numerous explosive sweeps at city-wide events, such as Super Bowl LI at NRG Stadium. He has eight years of public service.

K9 Lucky

Lucky is a 10-year-old K9 trained to identify explosives and track a scent. He has worked alongside his handler, Deputy David Bair, on 332 patrol deployments, 88 captures, and 151 explosive sweeps. K9 Lucky, a German Shepherd mix, has conducted numerous explosive sweeps at city-wide events, including the Grand Prix of Houston, NCAA Final Four Tournament, and Super Bowl LI at NRG Stadium. In 2015, he responded to an officer-involved shooting in north Harris County involving a Houston police officer. He was deployed at the scene, a gas station parking lot, and tracked the suspect's shotgun to a nearby wooded area, recovering crucial evidence. He has seven years and five months of public service with more than 2,400 training hours.

K9 Rico

Rico is a 9-year-old K9 trained to identify narcotics and track a scent. He has worked alongside his handler, former Deputy and current Waller County Sheriff Troy Guidry, on 127 patrol deployments, 48 captures, and 98 narcotic operations. Additionally, the team helped train handlers from the sheriff's office and other law enforcement agencies - dedicating about 160 hours per month to the instruction. K9 Rico has six and a half years of public service with more than 3,100 training hours.

FROM EARLIER: K9s retire from Harris County Sheriff's Office

They're trained to identify explosives, drugs and track scents. Now, they'll spend their golden years with their handlers.

WATCH: HPD officer T-Rex nominated for K9 of the year after losing leg

You can vote for T-Rex to help him win prizes including treats, toys and safety gear!