Several dogs set for K9 training die in Indiana after air conditioning fails in vehicle
CHICAGO (CBS) – Multiple dogs being taken from Chicago to a K9 training facility in Michigan City died on Thursday after the air conditioning unit in a cargo area they were being held in failed.
The 19 German sheperds were being taken from O'Hare International Airport and the driver of the vehicle was caught in a two-hour traffic delay, according to Lake Station, Indiana, police. After the unit failed, the temperatures in the cargo area began to rise and that caused some of the dogs to go into heat-related medical distress.
The driver was alerted by some of the dogs' barking. He stopped the vehicle at the Road Ranger on Ripley Street in Lake Station and entered the cargo area.
He saw the dogs in distress and began to remove the dogs inside crates.
Lake Station fire and police were called to the scene. Police said the scene "took an emotional toll on all that were involved in trying to save as many canines as possible."
"This is truly devastating," said Jenny Webber, executive director of the Humane Society of Hobart, Indiana.
Webber responded to the scene and said protocol was not followed.
"I don't think any veterinarian would've signed off on their health certificate given the temperature and the exposure that those pets would've been under," she said. "Now I don't, however, I'm not even quite sure if they had any of the paperwork or any of the documentation they should've had."
Weber said four of the dogs were eventually transported to the Hobart Animal Clinic and as many as 10 of them may have died.
Police did not specify how many dogs died.
"The driver left with four and the rest were decreased, and he left deceased animals and four live animals that I recommended be hospitalized immediately," she said.
She added the condition of those dogs was dire. Some were vomiting, had diarrhea. They were alert but "clearly suffering from heat stroke," she said.
Police also said after speaking with those involved, this was not an act of animal cruelty or neglect, but a mechanical failure of the air conditioning unit.
Still, Lake Station police have not responded to a request to address the allegations. Webber said she's also waiting for answers.
"It's very confusing," she said. "It's very disheartening, and I would like a call from the chief of police immediately."