Amidst the sounds of bagpipes and barking dogs, more than 4,000 people from across the country paid their last respects to fallen RCMP officer and dog handler Cpl. Jim Galloway.

Galloway, 53, was shot in the back Feb. 28 during a six-hour standoff with a man barricaded in a house in a community west of Edmonton. The gunman died later that night in hospital.

Officers dressed in their scarlet tunics took part in the service at a church in Sherwood Park, just east of Edmonton, which was overflowing with mourners.

Following the service, the officers stood in a long column down the road as the casket passed in front of them.

It was an emotional moment, "seeing at the end, the lines and lines of law enforcement people and the dogs all there for him to say, 'take care, Jim,'" said Const. Al Fraser, a friend of Galloway's for 14 years.

Sgt. Dave Wood, who travelled from Surrey, B.C., on an RCMP plane to attend the funeral, says many officers have memories of Cpl. Galloway.

"Jimmy is especially known because he's been in the dog section for so long – 50-years-old and still responding to calls at all hours of the night," he said. "I just have a lot of admiration for him."

Cpl. Galloway is survived by his wife, Margaret, three children and eight grandchildren. He had been with the RCMP for 35 years.

Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan and RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli were among the dignitaries.