Police under pressure

Failure of the authorities in the case of service dog “Billy”

The sad fate of police dog "Billy" touched many readers! The dog spent over 18 months in a kennel due to his unpredictability - without any exercise or contact with other dogs. He was put to sleep in January.

(Bild: klemens groh)

Despite our best efforts, all help came too late for police dog "Billy", who was quietly and secretly euthanized - we reported. But the circumstances and background to the case reveal that a lot could have gone wrong. The Ministry of the Interior has remained silent on the matter for weeks.

The fully trained service dog "Billy" spent a year and a half in solitary confinement on around 30 square meters in the Strebersdorf police dog center - he was considered unpredictable and biting. But instead of working with the animal or at least keeping it in a species-appropriate manner, those responsible turned a deaf ear. The "Krone" animal corner also got involved, but apart from appeasement, nothing happened and in January the fate of the Belgian shepherd was sealed.

During the on-site inspection of the kennel in Strebersdorf, all sorts of promises were made, but nothing happened.

(Bild: klemens groh)

Whistleblowers are up in arms
No more barking can be heard from "Billy's" kennel, but other voices are getting louder and louder. In recent weeks, several whistleblowers from police circles have repeatedly contacted the "Krone" animal corner with reports of gross abuses.

In particular, the planned promotion of the main person responsible for the "Billy" case to head of unit has met with incomprehension among the staff. There is talk of bullying, a lack of leadership quality and abuse of office, and corresponding internal proceedings are already underway.

Service dogs

• The Belgian shepherd dog (Malinois) is often used by the military and police.
• It is an extremely robust and strong dog.
• It is highly intelligent, sensitive and, above all, willing to work.
• Without proper exercise and leadership, it can become a "ticking time bomb".
• Several months of training costs around 34,000 euros. More than the gross annual salary of an inspector in the first few years of service. (without bonuses)

The ball is in the union's court
Only the unanimous rejection of the central committee of the police trade union is likely to interrupt the further career step at the moment, the Ministry of the Interior refuses to provide information on this when asked by "Krone", citing data protection.

Friendship?
The close friendship with a senior police officer since his youth and contacts at the highest political levels are cited by insiders as the main reason why an individual can do as he pleases.

Questions upon questions
The lack of relevant training and the fact that the person in question had never trained a service dog himself is also heavily criticized. The file in the "Billy" case is also full of question marks; for example, a genetic defect was cited as the reason for the lethal injection.

But why does such an analysis require such a long period of time when the dog was kept in solitary confinement for a year and a half? And why is something like this not tested before the Republic invests almost 34,000 euros in training a service dog?

Health causes in the dark
The fact that no autopsy of the Belgian shepherd was ordered is questionable. This would have been the only way to obtain certainty about the animal's state of health and draw conclusions for the future in order to avoid such problems.

All help came too late for "Billy". And yet his case has now set things in motion.

(Bild: klemens groh)

Where is the dog buried?
The "Krone" asked the Ministry of the Interior for a statement on all these allegations a few weeks ago, but no answer has been given to date despite requests. So where exactly the dog is buried remains a mystery for the time being. This also applies to service dog "Billy" - he was most likely simply thrown into the container at the rendering plant.