Hayden Howard believed it was a usual Saturday night until she brought her bull mastiff pup, Jackson, inside. She noticed he was covered in marks she originally believed were bug bites.
After closer observation, she noticed they were bullet holes and called the vet immediately.
(The second photo in this article shows Jackson at the vet and may be difficult for some readers.)
The dog’s owner, Hayden Howard says:
“I was in shock … I didn’t even know what to think.”
She doesn’t understand why anyone would do something like this.
The following Monday morning, Hayden took her dog to the vet.
The vet informed her they removed nearly 30 pellets and BBs from Jackson.
Unfortunately, there were over 20 pellets and BBs that could not be removed. There were marks from where several BBs or pellets probably hit the dog but bounced off and landed in the yard. Overall, police and the vet believe the dog had been shot at over 60 times and possibly close to 70 times.
Police investigators found BBs and used evidence from trees in the yard to determine a line of fire. Their findings in Howard’s yard led them to obtain a search warrant for a neighboring house.
Police found evidence inside the neighbor’s house that could be connected to the incident but did not release details.
In addition to possible evidence of BBs, pellets, or their respective guns, officers found drug paraphernalia and drugs, including marijuana and methamphetamine, at the house in question.
Charges were filed for drug possession.
However, no charges can be made in the animal cruelty case due to a lack of evidence. Further investigations and follow-up interviews are scheduled in hopes of finding more evidence to prosecute the person who shot at the dog.
Hayden hopes whoever did this will be caught and punished to the fullest extent of the law.
As an animal lover, you never want to see such severe animal cruelty. Anyone who could harm an animal like this should never be allowed to be around pets. There needs to be more done to punish those who harm animals for enjoyment.
Hayden is happy to report Jackson should recover well. He is home taking medicine.
Seymour police are offering a $500 reward for information on the person who shot a bull mastiff puppy.
Without a confession or more information to convict the shooter, police say they may never be able to prove exactly who pulled the trigger in this case. In cases like this when hard evidence is hard to find, it is even more important for neighbors or community members who may have witnessed the crime to speak up.
Animal cruelty cases like this can be hard to investigate. Many times, there is not enough evidence to convict someone.
Additionally, the punishment does not seem severe enough to the victims involved. To Hayden Howard and others whose pets have been the victim of animal cruelty, their pets are a member of their family. Harming their pet is like harming a child or a family member.
Animals can be defenseless, so it is important to protect them and show people cruelty like this is not funny and will not be taken lightly.
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