Sheriff’s office mourns death of ex-patrol dog
Retired Ulster County Sheriff’s Deputy Tom Lattin spent his dog’s last night alongside him on his porch in Florida.
On Saturday night, retired Ulster County Sheriff’s Deputy Tom Lattin spent his dog’s last night alongside him on his porch in Florida.
Retired Ulster County K-9 Beal, a German shepherd dog the deputy had known since he was just six months old, died by his side in the middle of the night, Lattin said Tuesday.
“He passed away right next to me. It was pretty much a storybook passing,” Lattin said, explaining he had decided to sleep on the porch with the dog when it began to have difficulty breathing.
“We’d always hoped he’d pass away at home rather than have to put him down,” Lattin said. “He was alert until about 15 minutes before he died.”
Lattin said Beal was diagnosed with cancer in December and given just weeks to live, but “we had about 50 (more) days with him.”
The Ulster County Sheriff’s Office is also mourning Beal’s death, according to a Facebook post.
Beal, 11, was a member of the Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit from July 2009 until his retirement in December 2012.
According to the post, Beal enjoyed his retirement with Lattin in Florida.
The deputy, a 21-year veteran of the Sheriff’s Office, was a dog trainer with the department and said Beal was his second dog. He said he retired in June 2015 and moved to Florida in August of that year.
Beal enjoyed the change of scenery, his handler said, noting that Beal “loved chasing squirrels and salamanders” in Florida even when he was no longer able to catch the squirrels as he got older.
“Beal had an extensive and productive career, including locating a large quantity of narcotics and was responsible for the seizure of thousands of dollars in cash,” the Sheriff’s Office posted. “Beal also successfully located countless suspects and missing people during his short career.”
The post said Beal will also be remembered for his many police dog demonstrations in the community.
Beal’s name will be etched into the K-9 Memorial Stone at the Ulster County Law Enforcement Center in the weeks to come, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
“The Ulster County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank Beal for his years of dedicated and exemplary service to the citizens of Ulster County and members of this agency. He will be fondly missed and forever remembered,” the post said.