Monte, a Montgomery County police dog since May 2018, died suddenly.
He was an eight-and-a-half-year-old Belgian Malinois-German Shepherd mix who came to the department from Slovakia and was paired with Corporal Phil Brower. Brower named Monte in honor of his late grandfather.
Brower and Monte worked for six years, especially patrolling for controlled dangerous substances. In one case, according to Brower, Monte tracked down an armed homicide suspect in the woods, stopping the suspect from escaping and preventing him from reaching a loaded handgun.
“Monte loved police work. It was his favorite thing, and he came to work each day full of excitement and enthusiasm. His work over the last six years helped make the job a little safer for the patrol officers he came to assist and helped keep the community a little safer for the citizens,” Brower wrote.
On his days off, Brower and Monte took a long walk, creating what the officer named Iron Dog, a three-mile obstacle course. That soon turned into a charity event for Spike’s K9 fund. The money was used for ballistic vests for all the police department’s K9s.
K9 teams from across the country competed in the obstacle course.
“Monte loved riding around the farm in the UTV, riding shotgun of course. Boat rides in the summer, and fishing for catfish on the Upper Potomac River. He loved trying to snuggle the family cat and backyard chickens,” according to Brower.
On Dec. 18, Monte cleared a large commercial building for the Rockville City Police Department and then joined in some ball tosses. A few hours later, Brower noticed a problem, and took Monte to an emergency veterinarian, who realized the dog was bleeding internally.
Tests revealed that Monte had numerous tumors on his liver, including one that had ruptured.
Browser’s constant companion was stabilized and given pain medications. He died soon after that “while in the arms of Cpt. Brower, his wife, Police Officer 3 Julee Brower and their daughter, Katelyn.
The Browsers thanked Friendship Hospital for Animals in Washington, DC “for their great level of care and compassion during this difficult time.”
Donations in honor of Monte and the Iron Dog campaign can be made here https://donate.spikesk9fund.org/event/iron-dog-2025/e581195.
