A North Carolina police department has launched an investigation after a video showed one of its officers throwing a K-9 over his shoulder and slamming it into the side of a police vehicle, WSOC reports. The incident took place during a K-9 training exercise with Salisbury Police officers.
In the video, a K-9, identified as 4-year-old Zuul, can be seen jumping out of the police vehicle and walking toward an officer, who then shouts a command. Zuul responds immediately, sitting still on the ground until the officer walks up and puts a leash on the K-9. He then lifts Zuul by the leash and throws the dog over his shoulder before heading back to the police vehicle.
Unseen officers can be heard on the video saying, "we're good" and "no witnesses," before the officer slams the K-9 into the side of the vehicle. As the officer then tosses Zuul inside, making a swatting motion, the other officers can be heard asking each other if their cameras are turned on.
Warning: The video below may be disturbing to some viewers.
On Tuesday (March 2), Salisbury Police Chief Jerry Stokes said Zuul was not harmed and that the incident could have been part of his training. However, he would not comment to local news sources if the officer's actions were appropriate or not, saying that "when a canine is non-compliant with the handler's commands, the handler is trained to correct the dog."
According to WSOC, an outside agency is investigating the incident, and the officer, whose name has not been released, has been separated from Zuul.
On Wednesday, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) released a statement about what it called "criminal behavior," FOX 8 reports.
"There is no scenario in which this handler's behavior could be considered acceptable by any standard, and we believe this is far more than an internal disciplinary matter," the animal rights advocacy group said.
Roy Taylor, a veteran K-9 handler for over 20 years, said the incident is an example of what not to do.
"By slinging the dog over his shoulder, carrying him back, he's cutting off that bloody supply and air for several seconds, and then by throwing him the vehicle the way he did, he risked causing some cervical spine or cerebral spine injuries to the dog," he said.
Taylor also said the incident could potentially damage Zuul's training, saying now the dog will now "have to reconsider whether he gets out of the car at all."
Photo: Getty Images