By Steve Burns

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — A Middle Georgia officer shot and killed his police dog after it attacked him, the Houston County sheriff said.

Sgt. Slate Simon and Kyro, a 4½-year-old Belgian Malinois, were helping with a manhunt in Dooly County on Tuesday when the incident happened, according to The Telegraph in Macon.

Sgt. Slate Simon and K-9 Kyro (Photo/Houston County Sheriff's Office Facebook)

“He was just doing his job,” Simon said of the dog. “It was just mistaken identity.”

Houston Sheriff Cullen Talton told the newspaper the dog bit Simon all the way to the leg bone. The only way the officer could get the dog to turn loose was to shoot him.

Simon and Kyro were partners for about three years, the newspaper reported. The dog had not had previous behavioral problems.

Kyro’s body is expected to be examined for signs of illness, according to the sheriff. The dog was up to date on its shots.

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©2017 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, Ga.)