Brooks County K-9 Officer left outside in rainy weather

• Weekend social media posts about Brooks County Sheriff's K-9 Officer Echo went viral.
• The viral videos showed Echo left outside in a kennel in rainy weather. One video showed Echo up to his paws in water, and the other without water to drink.

Frustrations are brewing after Brooks County K-9 Officer was seen left in his kennel enduring the rainy weather over the weekend.
K-9 Officer Echo’s former handler, Lieutenant John Gomez, posted videos to social media depicting Brooks County Sheriff K-9 Echo left in a kennel outdoors over the rainy weekend.

Brooks County Sheriff Benny Martinez said this was a miscommunication.

“He was never in danger. For someone to feel like he was mistreated. Like the dog was mistreated or not looked after — no,” Martinez said.

He said that Echo is a strong K-9 who’s been with the force since he was a pup.

Last weekend created a perfect storm for the town and the department. Streets were flooding, and first responders had to care for residents as they closed down streets.

“I guess you might refer to it as a little perfect storm that came in. He had shelter. He was on a gravel-type surface. The handler set him up at an area where we have a stream or a pool of water that filters through there,” Martinez said.

He said they didn’t know that Echo was at the detention center Thursday morning.

Lt. John Gomez was on his last shift with the department and was preparing to return all county equipment, including Echo, to the department.

“Since I submitted my resignation letter, only Commander Esparza has vocally said, ‘Hey, I received your email.’ We had a few words, and that’s all,” Gomez said.

Nothing was said about Echo, so Gomez said he left his K-9 by the dispatch door under the shade where people would see him.

Martinez said, “That wasn’t brought to our attention until the next morning, Friday morning. There’s no type of email or any type of correspondence from the handler to the office.”

Gomez went to check on the department’s first, and only K-9 at the detention center before and after Echo was moved to a ranch outside Falfurrias city limits. He recorded both times to show Echo’s condition.

According to Gomez, he sent the first video to the sheriff’s secretary.

“I had some words with the commander. I told him, ‘You all had two weeks to prepare on what you’re going to do with Echo. Either award him to me, issue him out to someone, or tell me to take care of him until you all find something. You all didn’t communicate anything with me," Gomez said.

He said Echo is not doing well in an unfamiliar place with constant supervision.

The Brooks County Sheriff said Echo will have a vet appointment scheduled to check on his health.

Sheriff Benny Martinez said they will not retire Echo since he is still young and can help the department for years to come.