He was ‘one of the best’ police dogs, Chief says. After death, cause is inconclusive

Officials are not sure why a young Cayce police dog died last month in the care of its handler, after testing proved inconclusive.

Cayce Department of Public Safety Director Byron Snellgrove said after the death of Maverick, a 2-year-old Belgian Malinois, post-mortem testing was done at with the Clemson Veterinarian Center and Michigan State Veterinary Laboratory.

The testing showed that Maverick had a bloody sac around his heart, a defused chamber in the heart, as well as a hemorrhaged pancreas. But why those condition occurred is unclear.

“Our Department then took the extra step to send the tissue samples for toxicology testing,” Snellgrove said in a statement Wednesday. “Despite all of the testing, the findings were ultimately inconclusive.”

The Cayce Public Safety Department investigated Maverick’s death and found nothing questionable or unusual about his treatment.

“Maverick had more than adequate shade, shelter, water and food and he was found in conditions that exceeded standards for any K9 Officer,” Snellgrove said.

Maverick died Aug. 29 during the night. The department said the dog was at home and not working when he died. His handler was at home as well. His handler checked on him three or four hours before his death. Maverick worked for Cayce Public Safety Department for one year.

“Our Department is deeply saddened at the loss of K-9 Officer Maverick ,” Snellgrove said.

Tumors and heart conditions are not uncommon in dogs, according to Dr. Dan Hall, a cardiologist at South Carolina Veterinary Specialist and Emergency Care in Columbia.

“We see a few cases a month here with tumors inside the heart or inside the heart sack,” Hall says.

Tumors or growths around the heart that could cause issues like Maverick’s can develop at any age, Hall said. But younger dogs are less prone to the growths.

“It becomes more likely the older (dogs) get,” Hall says.

The Cayce Public Safety Department started its K-9 program late in 2016 with one bloodhound, The State reported. Now, the department has five dogs.

“Sometimes it is hard to understand why a natural death occurs in a young animal,” Snellgrove said. “We will continue to work as a Department to train these phenomenal animals and we are thankful each day for their work and their companionship.”

Maverick is the second police dog to die in the Midlands in about a month’s time. A Columbia Police Department canine died on July 28 after being left in a police vehicle for nearly eight hours.

This story was originally published September 19, 2018 at 11:17 AM.