K9 Ivy – West Mercia, England

Died 7/5/18

Police dog dies while on duty in force vehicle

West Mercia have confirmed that one of their police dogs died while on duty yesterday (Thursday 5 July). The five-year-old called Ivy was in a “purpose-designed climate controlled police vehicle” with another dog when she was found unresponsive. She was taken to a vet, where she passed away. The force say she had not participated in any activity that day. The second dog in the vehicle was found not to be in any distress or unwell state. Police say an investigation will be carried out to determine the cause of Ivy’s death. Ivy was in a purpose-designed climate controlled police vehicle with another dog. She was discovered to be unresponsive and immediate medical care was provided by her handler. Consequently she was taken to the local vets where she sadly passed away. The second dog in the vehicle was found not to be in any distress or unwell state. Our thoughts are with Ivy’s handler and our Dogs Section team at this very sad 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.