JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Clay County deputies have launched an investigation into an Animal Control officer after a Rottweiler was found dead in the back of the officer's truck.

The dog's owner, Robert Brown, said his pet would still be alive if it hadn't been for Animal Care and Control.

While Brown said he understood why animal control picked up his dog, he said he couldn't fathom how his 2-year-old dog ended up dead.

"She used to run around with them and play. She never -- all of the kids got along with her," Brown said.

Like a parent, Brown said he was absolutely devastated when his mother called him with bad news from animal control last week.

He said Diamond had been picked up by animal control after she got out of the back yard. He said even though his younger brother was at home, animal control took Diamond because nobody over the age of 18 was at home.

When his mother called about picking up the family pet, Brown said no one knew what she was talking about.

"They didn't know where she was at. They didn’t know if they had a Rottweiler or anything," Brown said.

He said Connie Goon, the director of Clay County's Animal Control, told him Diamond had been left in a truck while the officer attended a meeting. When the officer went to process the dog, she was dead.

"They told her that they found the dog dead. She said that she had been dead for at least 45 minutes," Brown said.

Brown said animal control does not have an answer as to how his dog died, but he said he wants someone to be held accountable.

"If I were to leave my dog in the back seat of my car with the windows cracked, which would represent the vents inside the truck, and she died, I would be in trouble," Brown said. "Home is not the same because she would be the first one to greet you at the door. She slept in same room as me. It's just not the same."

Clay County is investigating whether there was wrongdoing in the incident.

Although Clay County Animal Control was not available for questioning, Brown said he and his family would meet with the director on Wednesday.