# K9 deaths



## Craig Snyder (May 7, 2012)

I'm extremely interested in how actual working dogs die before they are suppose to here in the US. I have started to track and record premature K9 and SAR dog deaths that I can find in the news. I do a weekly search of the internet for any new articles. I got interested in this from seeing the reports of K9's killed by being left in hot cars. I wanted to get a beter idea of how these great working dogs, (patrol, detection, tracking, SAR etc..) are meeting early deaths. Morbid I know.

But when I searched the internet I couldn't find any single place that tracks this. I found some memorial sites but they are incomplete and rely of someone posting the info. Most are memorials to working K9's that retired and died natural deaths.

I'm primarily looking at tracking line of duty, accidental deaths, and acute deaths like gastric torsion. I'm not tracking early death from chronic things like cancer.

If any one hears of the early death of a working dog, please drop me a PM or add a posting to this one. I'm sure there might be some that slide under the radar.

I have 18 for this year so far, (8 heat related). I hope to go back when I have some time and research 2011 as most of those should be available on the internet still. 

I have no idea how I'll ever use this info. Just curious at this point and it's something that shouldn't be too hard or too time consuming to do.

Craig


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## Ang Cangiano (Mar 2, 2007)

You could start here: http://cpwda.com/k9_kilod.htm
I wrote a report on K9 use once and found that the most common causes of death were heat related and struck by vehicle'. I don't know if that still holds true though.

Ang


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## Craig Snyder (May 7, 2012)

Ang Cangiano said:


> You could start here: http://cpwda.com/k9_kilod.htm
> I wrote a report on K9 use once and found that the most common causes of death were heat related and struck by vehicle'. I don't know if that still holds true though.
> 
> Ang


Wow Exactly what I was looking for. The site is VERY slow... :-(

Thanks!

Craig


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## Craig Snyder (May 7, 2012)

Ang, 

It has way more than I do but I also have a few that it doesn't have. 

But it helps a lot!

Craig


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## Ryan Venables (Sep 15, 2010)

Adding further to this. I looked at the site. Has anybody kept track of non-police/military working dogs and how they died?

I was talking with somebody a couple weeks back and he mentioned that every year there are at least a few dogs that die either leading up to or subsequently following the Selectif's in France. I didn't get into the specifics, but I'd be curious to know stats on that.

After seeing a couple dogs fall victim (but recovered) to head exhaustion this summer, I'm much more aware of my dogs... as neither of them have off switches.


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## Craig Snyder (May 7, 2012)

Ryan,

I think you make a great point. I have no idea as to how to track those however. I doubt you'll see much in the news and I'm sure any handler/kennel will try very hard to supress the info.

Craig


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## Ryan Venables (Sep 15, 2010)

I agree. Although I think most of us (handlers) would be willing to share a story (as I'm about to) on a dog if it could prevent the same from happening to somebody else. Sometimes a story is very painful for a handler to recount. I think there have been a few dogs that have met with untimely accidnets over the past year and while I've never heard a first hand account... the story does get passed along in the back channels.

My story, was that I co-owned a dog, had him for about a year after he was re-homed to me as an option instead of getting a new puppy. The dog was 5, and from the accounts I've received was essentially kennelled 24/7 with the excption to breeding and working. Long and short of the year that passes is that we bond, well he to my wife... it was her dog. We work out a great many of his issues, and just begin to toy with the idea of continuing his IPO training. He came to us with a BH, but had MANY failed attempts from what I understand due to control issues.

We were at a hotel preparing to go on vacation, decided to take the back stairs into the hotel to avoid the lobby. I was handling both he and my female (both Malinois). The stairs were steep, narrow, I had both dogs and because they were not on prongs (just flat collars) were pulling a bit on the leash. It was winter, there was snow on the stairs (from what I can recall - this incident was almost 3 years ago), so I unleashed them and let them go up the stairs on their own. (Caveat - these dogs were like pretty much everybody's dog here, well trained, no recall issues, often walked/exercised in off-leash circumstances. The long and short is that we had never experienced any leash/recall issues in the past). The top of the stairs, was about 3-4 stories off the ground, so about 3-4 flights up. The area at the top was a large patio area for the hotel, had chairs, fake trees, etc. It was quite large. Over 500 sq ft if I remember correctly. It was after 10pm, and winter so I was confident nobody would be out there. I got to the top, called my female, she came hustling over, and I leashed her up. I called the male, he goes into a "downward dog" (in play fashion) and hangs a hard right (my right his left as he was facing me), and then jumps over the 4' concrete barrier, crashes through a pine tree to the ground below. As I mentioned it was about 30-40 feet to the frozen ground below.

He sustained a puncture to his spine which essentially left him paralyzed from the mid-back, and some minor facial injuries. He underwent surgery and months of rehab, we were forced to ask the breeder to help in his rehabilitation. We ended up giving him back to the breeder as the rehabilitation he required was not available in our area (go figure, where I lived had 400,000 people and there was no K9 rehab...). Without dragging names through the mud and letting sleeping dogs lie (yes, bad pun), things got messy between the breeder and I. I never did see that dog again. I was told he did well for a time, but when the deep sensation of his rear legs continued to improve (probably the same feeling you get when your leg or limb is "asleep") he chewed the area to the point where an infection set in and the most humane thing to do was put him down.

I was a police officer in a former career, and nothing has ever traumatized me as much as that. Dead people, body parts, nothing. Watching that dog go over, and knowing there was nowhere to go but down effected me to my core. I still think about it, blame myself, and wish it never happened. I've dealt with it, made a mends inside, but I will always carry the guilt that I did not do better for him. Our only consolation is that his year with my wife and I was his best out of his life.

Anyway, there are many who know who the dog is, and who the breeder is... and some who have probably heard her version (I use that very loosely - as I mentioned I'm going to let sleeping dogs lie - lie being the operative word... opps did I do that?  I think I did... couldn't resist).

But there's my story. That taught me a lot about about exectations and thinking about possible dangers can exist out of seemlessly harmless situations.


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## Joby Becker (Dec 13, 2009)

Ryan Venables said:


> I agree. Although I think most of us (handlers) would be willing to share a story (as I'm about to) on a dog if it could prevent the same from happening to somebody else. Sometimes a story is very painful for a handler to recount. I think there have been a few dogs that have met with untimely accidnets over the past year and while I've never heard a first hand account... the story does get passed along in the back channels.
> 
> My story, was that I co-owned a dog, had him for about a year after he was re-homed to me as an option instead of getting a new puppy. The dog was 5, and from the accounts I've received was essentially kennelled 24/7 with the excption to breeding and working. Long and short of the year that passes is that we bond, well he to my wife... it was her dog. We work out a great many of his issues, and just begin to toy with the idea of continuing his IPO training. He came to us with a BH, but had MANY failed attempts from what I understand due to control issues.
> 
> ...


being a pragmatist here and trying not to sound dickish...but what do you expect, you did something with your dog, something happened you did not expect, and then could not deal with what happened...

If I was the breeder I would have offered to put the dog down for you, why would a breeder be expected to take on the responsibilities of the consequences of your actions with your dog?.

If the breeder did more than that, they should be commended. not passively aggressively talked about online...

I commend anyone willing to help a dog, with severe injuries or conditions, but would not fault anyone for making the decision to put the animal down either...


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## Joby Becker (Dec 13, 2009)

if a dog overheats and dies as a working K9...

are the handlers open the same laws as a normal person, who would probably be charged with neglect or abuse? if it was made public?


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## Ryan Venables (Sep 15, 2010)

Joby Becker said:


> being a pragmatist here and trying not to sound dickish...but what do you expect, you did something with your dog, something happened you did not expect, and then could not deal with what happened...
> 
> If I was the breeder I would have offered to put the dog down for you, why would a breeder be expected to take on the responsibilities of the consequences of your actions with your dog?.
> 
> ...


A little dickish, but that's okay. We don't know each other, and I'm a healthy skeptic also.

This is only the Coles notes, there is much more to this story that will not and really doesn't need to be shared, especially since it's been three years since it happened.

But I will address one of you points, and perhaps a spin off thread is necessary to really flush out some of the issues, as I want to respect the integrity of this thread. But I expected a hell of a lot more from this breeder, or would from any breeder. There is a reason the dog is a co-own, you want something from it that you may not otherwise be able to get if the dog is outright owned by somebody else. I'm not saying that is a good thing or bad thing. But in my intance, it was made abundantly clear to me that the decisions were not mine, as the dog was not in my name. In essence, I was a possessor and not an owner of the dog, and in law an owner trumps a possessor.

As a result, of this and other variables surrounding the breeder and us, a decision was made. But I do agree with you that the dog should have been put down that night. Hindsight and emotions played a large part of that.

But I will say that I'm being very very kind to the breeder. Those that know the situation, what actually happened, and some of the fallout can attest to that. But in the end, I"m not here to sling... I probably shouldn't have even put that last paragraph in (Mods feel free to remove it)...


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## Ryan Venables (Sep 15, 2010)

Joby Becker said:


> if a dog overheats and dies as a working K9...
> 
> are the handlers open the same laws as a normal person, who would probably be charged with neglect or abuse? if it was made public?


I think it would depend on what your laws are respecting animal abuse. I know in Canada, you have to meet a threshold that is "wilfully" causing... if it's an accident you're okay, but wilful can also encompass reckless, willful blindness, or intent.


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## mike suttle (Feb 19, 2008)

I'd guess that heat related fatalities are at the top of the list, I have heard of several K-9 getting hit by cars as well, and also heard of several who jumped over 3 or 4 foot walls and crashed 30 or more feet to a concrete parking lot. Bloat is another one that is not uncommon. I know of one recently that I sold last year that had a massive seizure and died. I have heard of at least one that was killed by a snake bite in the USA. This may happen more often in other countries that have more deadly snakes than we do. I also know of one that was killed by two pitbulls in the neighborhood where the dog lived off duty. I know of a working sport dog (not a police dog) that was strangled to death by a cable connected to a guillatine door in his kennel, and I have remember a few years back hearing about a dog that was trying to break out of a crate and got the top part of the door loose and sot his head through, then fought it and was found dead in his crate with his head stuck in the door that night. I also know of a few dogs that died from swallowing balls.
These are just some stories that I have heard of. I myself have lost two from bloat here, and one from a massive heart attack. 
When I was a kid I had a border collie get drowned fighting a racoon in a large beaver dammed creek.


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## Craig Snyder (May 7, 2012)

Along these lines, while it might be morbid, it might also be beneficial, to suggest having a separate forum for these types of things? 

In the fire companies we now have "near miss" reports. These are accidents that didn't quite happen. Like for instance we responded to a basement fire, missed obvious signs that the owner was a hunter. At the bottom of the steps the shells and rounds started going off. The guy loaded his own shells and pressed his own bullets. No damage as most of the rounds had no real power behind them and they mostly bounced off the thick fire gear.

So maybe a near miss forum and a forum for LOD deaths/injuries or any premature death of a working dog. We should learn as much as we can from these so as to not let history repeat.

Craig


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## Ryan Venables (Sep 15, 2010)

Craig Snyder said:


> Along these lines, while it might be morbid, it might also be beneficial, to suggest having a separate forum for these types of things?
> 
> In the fire companies we now have "near miss" reports. These are accidents that didn't quite happen. Like for instance we responded to a basement fire, missed obvious signs that the owner was a hunter. At the bottom of the steps the shells and rounds started going off. The guy loaded his own shells and pressed his own bullets. No damage as most of the rounds had no real power behind them and they mostly bounced off the thick fire gear.
> 
> ...


Not a bad idea. I think in the end, a good many of them, if we're paying attention can be avoided.

Had a near miss w/ my female was throwing the ball for her, she normally grabs it after it lands... She tracks it in the air, was running full speed, I happened to glance where the ball was going, she and the ball were heading right for a picnic table that I didn't notice when I threw the ball. She didn't see it as she was looking up. I yelled last second, she saw the table, veered right and just glanced off it. Had I not said anything she would have hit it at a full speed right in the middle of the table.


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## Pete Stevens (Dec 16, 2010)

Joby- depending on the circumstances, some have been prosecuted. In our area, a handler left the dog in the car after working an extended shift. The dog died in the car. It was a case of animal neglect and not abuse. Neglect is just that, being stupid and not caring for your dog. He later plead guilty the charge as a misdemeanor and was removed from the K9 unit. In California, abuse is a specific intent crime and since it was pretty obvious about the neglect, it was reasonable in this case. Some people weren't happy and wanted a felony but the elements weren't there. He also had to pay his agency for the dog. Could a heat alarm system have saved this dog? Maybe but maybe not. The handler is the first line of defense and no one should ever rely completely on a device to protect the dog. We have a policy of the windows have to be down 4 inches if we are away from the car for extended periods of time. If the car dies for whatever reason, the will be fine.


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## rick smith (Dec 31, 2010)

re: "The handler is the first line of defense and no one should ever rely completely on a device to protect the dog"
... well stated !

maybe not the same to relate this kinda stuff to navy work, but we almost lost a diver once due to some equipment problems and it was probably only because he was very experienced and didn't panic that he survived it....i happened to be running the dive that day :-(
.... i didn't cause the malfunction but it was my butt that got a lot more than just chewed on and that left an impression on me for many years after the accident ... and probably made me an even safer operator ... accountability has to be maintained and there is a definite purpose why ... too bad the top level people use it as a hanging noose to save their beauracratic butts :-(


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## Mark Horne (Oct 12, 2006)

No.1 Killer is Bloat or Torsion in the UK of operational K9's, probably followed road accident either hit by a vehicle or injured inside the vehicle they were in.
Many YouTube Videos which record K9 fatalities can be attributed to the officers flawed decison to deploy the dog, like into rivers etc. An example on here last year was when the officer deployed the dog on a busy interstate and the offender threw it in front of the traffic, the officer had options to wait and /or follow the subject off the interstate and await reinforcements as their was not immediate need to act.
Not counting the many videos where the dog is deployed and then every single officer opening up and shooting their own dog and offender! 

Mark


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## Nicole Stark (Jul 22, 2009)

Pete Stevens said:


> Could a heat alarm system have saved this dog?


I had to look this up to see if it was similar to what I suggested in another thread. It is though it appears to be a bit overpriced. Have these units been known to fail and if not I wonder why this wouldn't be considered required equipment.


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## Pete Stevens (Dec 16, 2010)

Nicole- anything mechanical can fail and I'm sure there has been a failure somewhere. We have them in all of our cars and that seems to be the trend especially as electronics get better. I like mine since its an all in one system for deployments and heat monitoring from one remote. The windows roll down and fans turn on if it gets hotter that 85 in my K9 ride. I also have a cellular dialer that calls my phone if the heat alarm goes off. If I don't answer, it has other numbers to call including our dispatch which is always monitored. 

But I say again, even with all this cool stuff- the handler is the first line of defense for the safety of the dog.


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## Nicole Stark (Jul 22, 2009)

That's logical and informative. Thanks for taking the time to respond to my question.


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## Pete Stevens (Dec 16, 2010)

I try not to make a habit of it but every once in a while I pull through.


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