The Arlington Fire Department is mourning the loss of one of its beloved K-9 dogs.

Hannah, a three year old Black Labrador, died on the operating table nearly two weeks ago from complications during surgery to remove a tumor. Even though she was new to the department, Hannah had been on duty during numerous incidents and routine checks, even picking up a scent on explosives at the Chris Kyle funeral.

Lead Fire Prevention Inspector and K-9 Handler, Jayla Patterson, worked with Hannah over the past year and a half, and the two formed a bond that deeply extended into each other's lives. Hannah was Jayla's coworker, pet and friend. "Hannah and I were inseparable," said Jayla. "She was with me 24/7.

When I would wake up, she would wake up. When I would get ready for work in the morning, she would be at the door waiting to go to work."

Jayla and Hannah worked together every day, training to sniff out odors of bomb particles for a toy reward. Jayla hid odors in places where a bomb could be and added distracters to help Hannah differentiate between explosive odors and common odors. Hannah's reward was a ball on a rope.

"Whenever I didn't feel good, she knew it," remembered Jayla. "She made sure to stick by me. Every time she walked into the room she made me smile. That's because of some of the quirkiest things she would do. She would go in between my legs and shake her butt all the time. She would drop down on the ground and scoot her head...she always kept me going. [Hannah] was the best dog that I ever had."

As Jayla spoke, Bindi, a very sweet fellow canine, entered the room as if to console her after the loss of their friend.

Both handlers and the dogs receive extensive training before they begin working with each other. Handlers go through a 10-week training program, while the dogs go through a nearly two-year program at Auburn University in Alabama.

The dogs begin training when they are just six weeks old, getting obedience training from inmates in a prison program, then going into an extensive training program for explosion detection. They are finally introduced to their handlers when they're about two years old. Once handlers learn how to present odors to the dogs, they are allowed to go home together.

The K-9 dogs can smell up to 19,000 different odors and each one costs the city about $130,000.

After their initial meeting a year and a half ago, Jayla and Hannah formed an immediate bond. But Jayla knew something was wrong when she felt a lump on Hannah's neck.

"I took her to the vet and they put her on antibiotics just to make sure she didn't have an infection," said a tearful Jayla. "They thought her glands were swollen so they put her on antibiotics. The swelling wasn't going down so I took her back in.

The vet found that the lumps were tumors. We found out that it was cancer. They found five other tumors, and one of them was wrapped around her jugular. When the doctor went in to remove it, it ruptured and she bled out."

Hannah's death has been a great loss to the department and the City. A citizen-initiated project - which includes a memorial - has been launched to honor retired and deceased police and fire service dogs that have provided devoted and loyal service protecting our community.

The bronze memorial is expected to cost around $100,000 and will stand between the Arlington Animal Services Center and the Tails 'N Trails Dog Park located at 1000 S.E. Green Oaks Blvd. To make a donation, please click here