HOUSTON — A Houston police dog helped officers catch a robbery suspect Tuesday night, but his work wasn't done.
After the suspect was in custody, K9 Ronin led his handler back to help a little guy he'd spotted earlier while searching for the robber. It was a scared puppy that had been abandoned in a wooded area.
"... Some scumbag had tied him to an old box spring and left him to die in the woods," the Houston Police Officers' Union posted.
K9 Ronin and his human partner freed the puppy and took him home. They cleaned up the little guy and he looked like a happy camper in the after photo.
HPOU shared an adorable photo of K9 Ronin lying on a bed and watching over the puppy in a box next to him. We're not sure if K9 Ronin was thinking, "Can we keep him?" or "This is my bed and you can't come up here, buddy."
"I'm sure this morning that rescued puppy is like, 'I wanna be a K9 cop when I grow up,'" One HPOUTX follower posted.
Now, they're hoping to find a permanent home for the puppy. If you're interested, let HPOU know by commenting on their post.
Catching bad guys and rescuing puppies aren't K9 Ronin's only skills! Last month, he and Officer Taylor Roccaforte won first place at RodeoHouston's K94Cops "Hard Dog/Fast Dog" competition.
K9 Ronin's handler survives 2019 shooting
If Officer Roccaforte looks familiar, it may be because he made headlines in 2019 when he was shot and wounded by a suspect wanted in connection with a violent crime spree.
Roccaforte was shot three times with his own gun after the suspect grabbed it during a struggle. Roccaforte’s partner heard him scream and shot and killed the suspect.
HPD said he was one of four suspects who carjacked a man at a gas station. When the stolen SUV ran out of gas near a church, they beat and robbed a priest as he prayed on his knees and then carjacked a woman.
Roccaforte, then 29, was chasing one of them when he was shot.
"I was so fortunate that night in such an unfortunate situation, I knew I was coming close to death," said Roccaforte. "My surgeon told me I was within 2 minutes of bleeding death, went through a miracle surgery and he saved me."
Joe Biden visits wounded officer in hospital
Then-presidential candidate Joe Biden heard about the shooting because it happened shortly after he took part in the presidential debate that night at TSU in Houston.
Then Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said Biden called him three days later to check on Officer Roccaforte.
“If you think it would be helpful to his spirit and recovery, I would like to visit him at the hospital. No media. I simply want to lift his spirits,” Biden told Acevedo.
"My dad woke me up and said hey Vice President Biden is coming to see you," Roccaforte told us. "I said really? I was on a few different meds so wasn't sure I understood."
Sure enough, Biden dropped by for a visit that was kept quiet.
RELATED: 'It was surreal' | HPD officer recounts Biden's secret hospital visit days after he was shot
Roccaforte was released from the hospital a few days later.