EVANSDALE - The Evansdale Police Department lost a four-legged friend this month.

The department's long-time drug detection dog, Eddie VonWestfork, succumbed to cancer on Sept. 11, following a long illness.

His service to the city will be honored with a display of brass dog tags and a photo in the police station.

Known as "Fast Eddie," the yellow lab started with the police force in July 1996.

He retired from the police department with an injury about three years ago and has been a family pet for his former partner, Brian Harrill, ever since.

But the dog was also like a member of the police department's family, said Chief Michael Burke.

"When he retired, we missed him very much," Burke said.

Eddie was strictly trained for narcotic searches and was known for his speed, which earned him the nickname "Fast Eddie."

"I've never seen a dog search as fast as he could," Burke said.

He recalled watching a training session where the canine tracked down drugs hidden in a plastic egg packaged with Super Glue that was wrapped in a dirty sock and then tucked into a boot.

Eddie and his partner were occasionally sent to other law enforcement agencies in Black Hawk County when they needed a dog to search for drugs.

Eddie was also an expert at rooting out candy in the chief's office, and always tracked it down in his left-hand desk drawer, Burke said.

"When I heard his tags rattling, I would put my candy dish up high," Burke said.

Eddie was born in 1993 at West Virginia Canine College in Buckhannon, where he was trained.

After being adopted by the Evansdale Police Department in 1996, he worked with Officer Randy Weber as his partner. Officer Brian Harrill became Eddie's partner in 1999.

Eddie was diagnosed with arthritis in 2001. He continued to work until 2003 when he was injured while jumping down from a semi he was searching.

The Evansdale Police Department hasn't had a dog since Eddie retired. Burke said the department has been accumulating forfeiture money to pay for a new dog and the related training in the future.

Contact Jeff Reinitz at (319) 291-1578 or jeff.reinitz@wcfcourier.com.