A police dog has died of heat stress while hunting down a suspected car thief in Australia.

The Queensland Police Service (QPS) issued a statement on Friday confirming the loss of a serving police dog.

PD Waco and his handler had been tracking the suspect in the Deception Bay area, after they fled on foot from the stolen car.

At around 2pm on Thursday, half an hour into the search, Waco's handler noticed he was becoming unsteady on his feet and realised he was showing signs of heat stroke.

A police spokesman said he was immediately given water and taken to a nearby veterinary surgery - but despite treatment to try to lower his body temperature and replace his body fluids, he died at around 5am on Friday.