TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Two Tallahassee men are behind bars after leading police on a chase in Madison County on Thursday, the Madison County Sheriff's Office said.

Twenty-year-old Daniel-Isiah Terry and 29-year-old William Linton, both of Tallahassee, are each charged with three drug offenses, according to Madison County jail records. Terry is also charged with fleeing or eluding a police officer at a high rate of speed, causing great harm to a police animal, according to the records.

Their arrests stem from an incident that occurred Thursday in Madison County in which a police dog was left in critical condition and hospitalized for heat-related illness.

On Thursday, Madison County Sheriff David Harper announced that six-year-old tracking dog Archer played a crucial role in the arrest of a suspect later identified as Terry.

According to MCSO, officers were dispatched to pursue Terry, who fled a traffic stop earlier that day. An officer attempted to pull Terry over after catching him speeding on Interstate 10, MCSO Undersheriff Chris Andrews said.

However, Andrews said Terry did not stop, but instead took an exit onto State Road 14 in Madison County, drove down a dirt road and crashed into a number of trees. Terry then abandoned the car with the passenger inside and ran into the woods, the deputy sheriff said Thursday.

The MCSO then deployed a drone and a tracking dog, which the MCSO says resulted in Terry being captured in trees near Sampala Lake Road.

“The dog immediately picked up the scent of the person who fled the vehicle and tracked the deputy right to him,” Undersheriff Andrews said in a video posted to Facebook on Thursday. “As soon as they got closer, the person jumped up and kept running. So we finally caught the guy.”

According to Andrews, K-9 Archer overheated while pursuing Terry.

K-9 Archer began acting ill as he and his handler returned to the car after locating Terry, Andrews said during the video, after which his handler immediately sought medical attention for K-9 Archer.

According to Sheriff Harper, the German Shepherd's condition was stabilized at the Madison Veterinary Clinic that same day before he was transported to Allied Veterinary Emergency Hospital in Tallahassee accompanied by a deputy.

On Thursday, K-9 Archer's condition changed rapidly. “Right now it's 50/50,” Andrews said that day.

On Thursday evening, Undersheriff Andrews said the police dog's condition was “better than before.” About an hour later, Undersheriff Andrews announced that K-9 Archer would be transported to the University of Florida Small Animal Hospital in Gainesville.

Sheriff Harper said in an update posted on Facebook that evening that the police dog had shown signs of improvement but was still in critical condition.

On Friday morning, the sheriff's office posted another update on Facebook, saying the six-year-old dog remains in the intensive care unit at UF Small Animal Hospital in Gainesville and continues to receive blood plasma transfusions.

“At this time, his condition has not changed significantly, but he is stable and has not deteriorated. That is positive,” Sheriff Harper said in the update on Friday. “There remains a lot of uncertainty as he continues to receive the best care possible.”

According to Undersheriff Andrews, the six-year-old dog has been with the MCSO for about five years.

To stay up to date with all the latest news, follow WCTV on Facebook And X (Þjórsárden).

Do you have a news tip or do you see an error that needs to be corrected? Write to us here. Please include the title of the article in your message.

Stay up to date with the most important headlines with the WCTV News app. Click Here to download it now.

All rights reserved.