LaCROSSE — An 84-year-old woman, apparently locked out of her house, was found dead near her back door Sunday afternoon with her golden retriever next to her frozen body.
LaPorte County Chief Deputy Coroner John Sullivan pronounced Mary Labounty, 8832 W. Indiana 8, LaCrosse, dead at 2:27 p.m.
“The cause of death was hypothermia and exposure,” Sullivan said.
Because of the extreme cold, it was difficult to tell the time of death but he said she likely had been dead for less than 24 hours when she was found by a friend visiting from Kouts.
The friend, also elderly, often took Labounty shopping, to the bank, to doctor appointments and on other errands, Sullivan said.
Sullivan said it looks as if Labounty locked herself out of her house and when she tried the latch on the back door, it snapped, probably from the cold, and cut her hand.

He believes she lay down next to the dog in an effort to keep warm.
The dog seemed to be healthy when the woman was found and Labounty’s friend took the dog home with him.
The friend told investigators Labounty frequently rose at 4:30 a.m. to bring food to wild animals, to raccoons, deer and possums.
“She called them her animals,” Sullivan said. “After bringing the food to an area behind her house, she would return to the house to watch them feed.”
Sullivan spoke to Labounty’s daughter in Virginia. “Her daughter had tried for years to get her mother to move to Virginia,” he said, “but she wouldn’t move. She apparently loved living in LaCrosse in the rural area.”
The area, west of LaCrosse, is so rural that Labounty had no nearby neighbors to ask for help.
“Her nearest neighbor is about a mile away,” Sullivan said.