Editing McGruff the Crime Dog (section)

=== McGruff Houses and Trucks ===
The McGruff House program, launched in 1982 in Utah, provided temporary safe havens for children in emergency situations. It was created in response to the abduction and murder of five children by Arthur Gary Bishop. Homeowners and apartment dwellers, after passing a background check, would display a McGruff sign in their windows to signal that their homes were safe places for children in distress. Children were taught in schools and at community events to seek help from these homes when they felt threatened or needed assistance.

The program operated under the motto "we'll call for help," emphasizing that McGruff Houses were temporary refuges. Volunteers were trained to contact the proper authorities and provide emotional support to children in danger, but they were not expected to provide first aid or escort children, except in extreme emergencies where they were qualified.

In 1986, the first McGruff Truck program was introduced in Utah, with a utility company designating its trucks as "rolling McGruff Houses." The program expanded to include other companies and municipalities, and by 2006, over 170 participants were involved. However, in February 2012, the McGruff House program was discontinued after nearly 30 years due to the increasing use of cell phones for emergencies and tighter budget constraints.

In 2018, McGruff made a comeback through a TV spot in GEICO Insurance's "Count on GEICO" campaign, developed by the Martin Agency. The ad featured an animated McGruff attempting to share investigation evidence with human colleagues, who humorously dismissed him as an actual dog, leading to McGruff storming out in frustration.