K9 Kolt – Monroe, Wisconsin

Died 5/15/23
Handler – Alexander Maas

Monroe Co. K-9 dies from heat-related injury, sheriff’s office investigating

Monroe County Sheriff’s Office announced one of their K-9s died last week. Sheriff Wesley Revels said K-9 Kolt had a “heat-related injury” last Wednesday. Though he was immediately taken to a veterinary clinic in Sparta then to the VCA Animal Hospital in Madison, Kolt was unable to recover and died Monday afternoon. K-9 Kolt was six years old and passed away surrounded by loved ones.”We feel blessed by the service that Kolt provided to the Sheriff’s Office and communities throughout Monroe County,” Revels said. Revels said the death has been “very difficult for everyone” and “there is no doubt that this loss will have a lasting impact on Kolt’s handler and the Sheriff’s Office as a whole.” Revels said the sheriff’s office is investigating the events that led to K-9 Kolt’s death. He also stated a Monroe County deputy has been placed on administrative leave “to ensure the effectiveness of the investigation. “No additional information is available at this time.

Submitted By Jim Cortina

James A. Cortina has been involved with police dogs since 1972 and currently on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Jim has been appointed as Treasurer since its inception in 1991. Jim is one of the charter members of the C.P.W.D.A. organization. Since 1975 he has been a certified professional dog trainer and received his Master Trainer Certification in 1985. During his career he has provided armed K-9 strike crowd control for security agencies in Connecticut and out of state security companies. In conjunction with other members of the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Board of Directors, he helped to draft Connecticut Statute 53-247(e) "Intentional Injury or Killing of Police K-9" which was passed by the Senate in 1993 and also assisted in implementing the prestigious Daniel Wasson Memorial K-9 Award in 1992. In 1993 he helped coordinate the North American Police Work Dog Association Nationals in New London, Connecticut. He was appointed Training Director for the New London County Work Dog Association from 1985-1987. He performed decoy work for Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. in police K-9 demonstrations, trained several local police department canines, and coordinated training workshops for out-of-state police departments. He participated in the United States Police K-9 Association Trials in Croton on Hudson, New York in 1985 as a decoy. He is an avid photographer and received photography awards in 1989, 1990, and 1991 and currently takes photographs for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc.