K9 Wix – Brown County, Wisconsin

Died – 8/12/15
Handler – Deputy Austin Lemberger

Alarm & AC fails, killing Brown County Sheriff’s K9

The Brown County Sheriff’s Department says one of their police dogs died in a hot car when the air conditioning malfunctioned on Wednesday. Authorities say the K9, Wix, and his partner, Deputy Austin Lemberger, were on special assignment in Sheboygan County at the PGA Championship. Wix and Lemberger were contacted to help with security at the event in Haven because they specialize in detecting explosives. In a news release, authorities say Wix was placed in the squad car with the engine running and the air conditioning on. Officials say Lemberger checked the dog throughout the morning. But around 12:30 p.m., Lemberger found Wix unresponsive in the car. He discovered the air conditioning had stopped working. A special alarm meant to alert handlers that the car was too hot for a dog failed to sound, according to the sheriff’s office. The 3-year-old Belgian Malinois had been with the Brown County Sheriff’s Department since April 2014. Wix, who was also trained in tracking, worked with Lemberger the entire time. Bay East Animal Hospital is helping to investigate Wix’s death.

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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.
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