Dog dies in car after owner is arrested on DWI charge, Texas police say

A Texas woman’s dog died in her car after she was arrested on a DWI charge and taken away from the scene, according to police.

Responding to a report of a reckless driver on Sunday, Aug. 7, Round Rock police pulled a vehicle over on the 100 block of University Oaks Blvd., the department told McClatchy News in an email. A woman was behind the wheel, driving with a canine passenger.

The dog’s name was Landa, a beloved pet husky, the woman’s brother told TV station KXAN.

“(We’re) very, very sad he’s no longer with us,” he said.

Officers started a DWI investigation around 12:15 p.m., first ensuring that the woman’s car was left running with the air conditioning on for the dog before they began, according to the department.

Police arrested the woman and one officer stayed behind to await animal control.

When an animal is at a scene, it is generally the department’s policy to either hand that pet over to a family member, or have animal control come pick it up, the department said.

But at some point when the officer didn’t notice, the car’s engine stopped, “turned off on its own,” according to police.

Temperatures reached 101 degrees in Round Rock that day.

When animal control arrived, over an hour after the start of the DWI investigation, the dog was dead.

“This was an unfortunate incident and we are trying to determine how this happened,” the department said, adding that the owner was “immediately notified.”

Upset by the loss of Landa, the woman’s family is also eager for answers, KXAN reported.

“She understands that this situation — she put herself in a very bad place,” her brother said. “But at the same time she shouldn’t have to worry about the life and welfare of her dog when she’s been detained.”

The dog’s body has been sent to a lab in College Station for a necropsy, police said in an email.

Round Rock, population roughly 130,000, is about 20 miles north of downtown Austin.