That's a little on the nose.
The Los Angeles Police Department has done about $150,000 worth of business with dog breeder "Adlerhorst International LLC" over the last five years. LAPD buys German Shepherds from the breeder for $9,800-$13,000 a piece.
Adlerhorst translates to "Eagle's Nest" in German, and was the name of Hitler's bunker and command post in the alps during World War II.
The translation came to light after LA City Council rejected a donation of two of the trained dogs to the police.
The council member said he searched online to see if the company's name might possibly have another meaning, but couldn't find anything.
"To me, it feels like it's a glorification of the Nazis and Hitler," Blumenfield added. "I don't know that's the intent of this company, but in reality, it's a creepy name that shouldn't really be associated with a company like this. They've had plenty of time to deal with it and I can't support doing business with a company that's glorifying Hitler's bunker."
Looking at Adlerhorst's extensive client list, it's surprising that no one other than the LA City Council seemed to notice that the company shared a name with a location overtly linked to the Nazis. Seemingly, in the hundreds of transactions that police departments, sherrifs offices, correctional facilities and the Los Angeles Unified School District(!) have had with the company, no bureacrat paused and thought to Google what "Adlerhorst" meant.
It's uncommon for council offices to know specifics on department procurement but this item was different as it involved a donation that had to go through council."
Will the name change? Seems unlikely.
Vice News previously reported that David Reaver, the founder of Adlerhorst International LLC., had been sued multiple times for alleged injuries caused by the dogs from his company. Reaver has denied allegations of racism in the past, saying the company's name comes from a German kennel where he bought a dog in the 1960s. He launched his company in 1976.
Lexis-Olivier Ray, LA Taco
