HOUSTON- A Houston police dog died of heat exhaustion Monday after the patrol car the dog was left in shut off, the department said.
The dog, Aron, was 4 and had been with the department for a year and a half.
Police said in a news release that Aron’s handler, who was not publicly identified, left him in a running patrol car with the air conditioning on. The department described the action as standard practice when dogs are not actively engaged in police work.
Aron’s handler returned and discovered that the engine had shut off, the department said. Aron was in distress and was taken to an emergency veterinarian clinic, where he died.
Houston police said several safety mechanisms are in place in its K-9 vehicles to prevent dogs from being left in hot cars. Police said the vehicles have a system that notifies the handler, sounds the horn, activates cooling fans and rolls down the windows if the vehicle shuts off.
“This did not happen in this instance,” police said. It was unclear why the system did not function properly.
Police are investigating the incident, and all of the department’s K-9 vehicles will be inspected.
“Please keep Aron’s handler and the entire K-9 team in your prayers as they mourn the loss of Aron,” police said.
A police dog in Georgia died this month after the air conditioning malfunctioned in a patrol car. Police in Cobb County, near Atlanta, said Chase was found unresponsive in the vehicle June 5.
Authorities said the air conditioning system failed and the temperature quickly rose inside the vehicle. Police said the vehicle’s safeguard system failed, including functions that should have turned on the lights and sirens and rolled the windows down.
