Seven show dogs die in Jefferson County

By Ryan Dean

KSDK -- The Jefferson County Sheriff's Department is investigating the deaths of seven show dogs at a home in Arnold.

Sheriff Glenn Boyer said that on Tuesday, deputies responded to the first block of Kroeck Drive where the dogs had been kept.

Sheriff Boyer said that the custodian of the dogs reported she had returned to the home from a dog show in Iowa at about 1:00 a.m. on Monday. She said she started to place the dogs in kennels in the garage of the home, but due to the extreme heat
she left the dogs in their porta-kennels in the van.

The woman said that she placed six electric fans in the van to cool the dogs and left a door open with the vehicle's windows partially open.

The woman told deputies that she went into the home and went to sleep. She said that she woke up and checked the dogs at approximately 4:05 am and the dogs appeared to be fine.

She said that she checked on the dogs again at about 6:30 am and found three of the dogs were in distress and five were unresponsive, but breathing.

The woman said she gave the dogs first aid and transported them to a veterinarian in House Springs. One dog that was in the van survived.

The exact cause of death is unknown pending medical examination of the dogs. The dogs have various owners.