Missouri officer charged with animal abuse after K-9 dies in hot car

A police officer in Missouri has been charged with animal abuse in connection to the death of his K-9 partner Horus, who died after being left in a hot car for hours, according to multiple outlets.

The incident happened on June 20 following Savannah Police Department Lt. Daniel Zeigler’s overnight shift with Horus, reported The Kansas City Star citing a probable cause statement from Missouri Highway Patrol.

Zeigler reportedly contacted the police chief, Dave Vincent, just before 6 p.m. to tell him Horus had died.

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Vincent went to Zeigler’s home and learned the K-9 had been left in a car all day, dying of heat exposure, The Kansas City Star reported.

Court documents said the vehicle’s AceK9 system, designed to initiate safeguards when internal temperatures get too hot, was proven to be functioning after multiple tests. Authorities said it would have had to be manually disabled to not have worked the day Horus died.

The German shepherd K-9 joined the department in 2021 when he was almost 2 years old, according to social media posts from the department.

The Savannah community, located about an hour north of Kansas City, voiced outrage over Horus’ death and the lack of a ceremonial burial.

Vincent posted on the department’s Facebook page that the final resting area for K-9 Horus was a work in progress and that no disrespect was meant.

Updates on the Savannah Police Department’s social media show a headstone was donated for Horus’ grave and a memorial service for the K-9 was held on Sept. 7.

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Sadly, this isn’t the only case of a Missouri K-9 dying after being left in a hot patrol car this summer.

A German shepherd named Vader with the Arnold Police Department , located south of St. Louis, died in July after he was left in a running car and the air conditioner reportedly malfunctioned. Officers claimed the vehicle’s heat alarm system did not work as it was supposed to and the incident is under investigation.