memorial2001

Memorials to Fallen K-9s

2003 page 24
The F.A.S.T. Co. donates sets of cards to all partners
I need your help to inform me of such losses.

Dept. addresses available for those who want to send condolences to officers. See below

In Loving Memory of
K-9 KAI
July 18, 2003

Partner: TSgt. Doug Rollison
former Deputy
Leavenworth Sheriff's Dept. KS

Kai passed away on Friday, July 18th. He would have been five years old in August. He is missed terribly. Even more so now that I know we will never get to see him again.

Kai passed away while Doug is on active duty in the middle east. Cause? Illness, possibly due to a broken heart. Kai was taken from the Rollison family after Doug went on active duty. He served with another handler. His entire life changed; his handler was new, his home wasn't the same, his family wasn't there. The Rollison family was never the same either. They didn't visit him, fearing it would make the adjust even more difficult for both. Doug is a T.Sgt and on his way home, thinking that Kai can return to him on the job and to their family. It will be a mixed emotional home- coming. Kai is the second memorial for Deputy Rollison on this website. He is thinking of giving up the K9 life and looking into another type of work for the department. We wish you well Doug, in whatever you do, whenever you return to civilian life again.

In Loving Memory of
K-9 SANDOR
July 15, 2003

Partner: Officer Rodney Stevens
Muleshoe Police Department
Chief of Police Don Carter
215 E Ave B
Muleshoe, Texas 79347
((806)272-4569

Police dog dies in hot car
By GREG CUNNINGHAM - gcunningham@amarillonet.com
Amarillo Globe News
MULESHOE - Muleshoe officials are determined to secure a replacement for the city's police dog that died last week of heat exhaustion, despite a price tag that could total several thousand dollars. Police Chief Don L. Carter said Monday that he wants to find a replacement for Sandor, a Belgian Malinois that died July 15 when a patrol car's air conditioning failed on a 100-degree day. "Our intentions are to replace it," Carter said. "We are looking at a couple of different options." Carter said the best-case scenario would involve a payment from the city's insurance carrier to buy a new dog, which would save the city approximately $8,500. The city did not have an insurance policy on the dog specifically, but Sandor was property of the city, so the replacement may be covered. Even if insurance doesn't cover it, Carter is committed to finding money to replace a valuable member of the department. "We acquired the dog about 2 1/2 years ago, and I think a lot of people became believers," Carter said. "The dog proved its worth."

Carter said Sandor's death was apparently caused by a shutdown in the air conditioning on the Ford Crown Victoria patrol car. Sandor's handler, Rodney Stevens, left the dog in the car for about half an hour July 15 to go into the police department and do some paperwork. Police working dogs aren't suited to an office environment, so department procedures called for leaving the dog in the car with the engine on and air conditioner running. About half an hour after going inside, Stevens went out and found the dog dead and the air conditioner blowing nothing but hot air. "It could make people think twice about leaving children or pets in a hot car." Police Chief Don L. Carter

The local Ford dealership determined that the air conditioner compressor kicked off because the engine got too hot - a safety feature of which Carter said no one was aware. "This was an unfortunate accident," Carter said. "I guess if anything positive comes out of it, it could make people think twice about leaving children or pets in a hot car. We're talking about 30 minutes here, and that's all it took." A check with several other law enforcement departments revealed that Muleshoe's policy of leaving the dog in the car is standard. Jim Watson, national secretary and accredited master trainer with the North American Police Work Dog Association, said police dogs occasionally die from too much heat, despite police departments' best intentions. "One must remember, you're dealing with a machine, a police car," Watson said. "All machines at one point or another fail. If it was an equipment failure, then accidents do happen." Watson said he had never heard of the air conditioning kicking off on a running Ford Crown Victoria - a model that makes up a large part of the police fleet in many cities nationwide - but he hears reports of dogs dying in cars due to other factors. James Smithson, service manger at John Chandler Ford in Amarillo, said today's computer-driven cars will shut down the air conditioning under the right circumstances, including when an engine gets too hot. "There's several things anymore that will turn the air conditioning off," Smithson said. "If the computer senses the engine is getting so hot it's going to seize up, it's going to shut the compressor down to take some of the load off. It's all up to the computer anymore."
Carter said now that he knows the loss of air conditioning is a possibility, even in a running car, the city will install a temperature monitoring device to protect the next dog. The devices recently have come down in cost to about $800.
"I think it's clear that the dog is a valued member of this department," Carter said. "We'll do what we have to, to find another one and keep it around."
also notified by Kelly George & many others

Personal note: this is the second Ford Crown Victoria patrol car that had this problem. K9 Hondo, Kansas City, MO P.D.

In Loving Memory of
K-9 CHOLE SAR
July 23, 2003

Handler: Ann Spurlock
ICQ 70650356
Richmond, TX 77469

For no bond is stronger than that of K-9 and handler and nothing breaks that bond ... not even death. Please help me in remembering my beloved Chloe. When I picked up Chloe at 16 weeks of age, she was a sweet puppy. She came to me, put her chin on my knee as I knelt down to say "hi", and we were never separated after that day. Chloe started her SAR career as a trailing dog in 1999 with Lone Star Search and Rescue and moved to human remains recovery with Special K9s of The Woodlands in 09/2000. She had three finds in her career before her retirement from an illness called irritable bowel disease. Those who have met her know that she IS an ambassador for the rottie breed and the shinning star of my household. She never met a stranger and those she had not met were just friends yet to be seen. Chloe changed a lot of people's mind about what a rottie is and should be. She has enjoyed a wonderful retirement for the last 2 years. It's been a long hard recovery for her and she has fought valiantly for her life and my happiness. She died peacefully at the vet's office on the morning of 07/23/03. Chloe and I shared the same birthday 07/18. Chloe's ashes will be spread in Galveston Bay where she loved to play and romp and where she had her first find locating two drowned fisherman. Rest well my friend. I miss you terribly and will NEVER forget. I know you and I will be together again at Rainbow Bridge.

Thank you Dana (Berry) for submitting Chloe's name. Halley and Chloe will be waiting for us and we will all play again one day - whole and happy.

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