Texas police K-9 dies from snake bite: ‘He will be missed’

BAYTOWN, Texas (Gray News) - Police in Texas are mourning a K-9 officer who died after he was bitten by a venomous snake during a training exercise.

The Baytown Police Department said a K-9 officer named Lenin was pronounced dead Thursday after he was bitten by a venomous snake. The bite happened the day before his death during an on-duty training exercise.

Lenin’s handler, Officer Kinzie, rushed his K-9 partner to the veterinarian, but the K-9 ultimately died from the effects of the venom.

“He was one of our own as surely as any other officer in this agency is one of our own. For us, that means he was family, and he will be missed but never forgotten,” said Police Chief John Stringer in a statement.

Lenin served as the department’s first explosive ordinance detection K-9 for seven months. He was credited with “locating numerous firearms and shell casings during evidence searches,” according to his memorial page.

In February, police say the K-9 and his handler won multiple awards, including TOP Bomb Dog, while competing against 75 other K-9 teams during a training seminar in Alabama.

Lenin was a 2-year-old Belgian Malinois-German shepherd mix.