At a glance

  • Grant Parish Sheriff Steven McCain told KALB that Corporal Arthur Souza accidentally shot K9 Axel during a nighttime patrol in Kisatchie National Forest.
  • McCain said Souza believed a heavily breathing four legged silhouette moving toward him was a wild hog.
  • Axel was eight years old and had been Souza's K9 partner for two years.
  • The sheriff said dash camera footage, veterinary records and Souza's account were reviewed during an internal investigation.
  • Souza was placed on administrative leave, according to McCain. The sheriff described the shooting as unintentional and said it was not being treated as criminal.

A Grant Parish Sheriff's Office K9 was killed when his own handler mistook him for a wild hog during a nighttime patrol in Kisatchie National Forest, Sheriff Steven McCain told KALB. The dog, Axel, was eight years old and had worked with Corporal Arthur Souza for two years.

The account currently rests on McCain's direct interview with the Alexandria, Louisiana television station. Buddylio found earlier reporting that independently establishes Axel as an active Grant Parish K9, but no second newsroom had independently confirmed the circumstances of the shooting when this article was checked.

What the sheriff says happened

McCain told KALB that Souza was patrolling the national forest near midnight and got out of his vehicle after seeing wild hogs crossing the roadway. After watching them for several minutes, Souza heard heavy breathing and saw the silhouette of a four legged animal moving toward him.

According to the sheriff's account, Souza believed the animal was a charging hog and fired. He then realized the animal was Axel. KALB's report does not give the distance between Souza and the silhouette, say why Axel was outside the vehicle at that moment or identify the exact road or time of the shooting. Buddylio is not filling those gaps with assumptions.

The same fictional dark sable working dog standing on leash beside an unmarked vehicle on a forest road
A conceptual patrol preparation scene with the same fictional dog. It is not a reconstruction of the shooting.

An internal review led to administrative leave

McCain said the Sheriff's Office reviewed dash camera footage, veterinary reports and Souza's first hand account. He told KALB that corrective action was being taken and that Souza had been placed on administrative leave. The sheriff did not state how long the leave would last or describe the disciplinary action in detail.

The sheriff also said the office did not consider the incident criminal because it found no intent to shoot Axel. That is McCain's stated conclusion as the head of the agency. The available public reporting does not identify a separate outside investigation, prosecutor review or court finding.

McCain said Souza accepted responsibility and was devastated by Axel's death. Those comments describe the sheriff's assessment of his employee; they do not answer the operational questions that remain unavailable in the public record.

Axel was part of a four dog K9 team

KALB reported in March that the Grant Parish Sheriff's Office had four active K9s: Axel, Rugger, Toby and Atlas. That earlier report confirms Axel's place in the unit months before his death. It also described continuing handler training and the close day to day bond between handlers and their dogs.

A separate June report about summer heat precautions identified Souza as one of the agency's K9 handlers. It described handlers keeping vehicles running for air conditioning, carrying water and preparing the vehicles before shifts. Neither earlier story addresses the shooting, but together they corroborate that Axel was an active agency dog and Souza was serving in the K9 program.

The same fictional dark sable working dog sitting beside an unidentifiable handler at the edge of a pine forest
A respectful conceptual portrait using the same fictional dog. It does not depict Axel or his handler.

What remains unconfirmed

The public account does not establish the precise sequence recorded by the dash camera, the visibility conditions, Axel's position immediately before the shot or the specific corrective measures the agency adopted. It also does not include a public incident report or an independent statement from Souza.

Those unknowns matter because a single interview can report an official explanation without independently testing every part of it. The confirmed public facts are narrower: McCain says Souza fired after mistaking Axel for a hog, Axel died, the agency conducted an internal review and Souza was placed on administrative leave. Buddylio will update this article if the Sheriff's Office or another reliable source releases material information.

Sources

On the sourcing: The circumstances of Axel's death, the internal review and Souza's administrative leave come from KALB's direct interview with Sheriff Steven McCain. Buddylio found no independent second report of the shooting when this article was checked. Earlier KALB reporting separately confirms Axel's role in the unit and Souza's role as a K9 handler.

How we reported this: Buddylio reviewed the named sources, checked the organizations and figures shown above, and added context for animal lovers. Any illustration is labeled and does not depict the actual animals or scene. This report was checked on August 26, 2026. The Sheriff's Office had described the shooting as accidental and Souza as being on administrative leave; no separate outside review or criminal charge had been publicly announced in the sources Buddylio found. Articles are editorial content, not veterinary advice.