By WESLIE GRAHAM
Moapa Valley Progress
With hunting season in progress those participating in the dove hunt, and other local hunts, are encouraged to use precautions regarding the use of firearms near homes. On Sept. 12 an Australian shepherd cross dog was shot, seemingly at close range, on a local family’s property.
Sarah McAllister discovered her injured dog “Camo” around 8:00 p.m. that evening, and initially thought he had been kicked by one of her horses. Following a trip to the vet, and a meeting with a surgeon, it was discovered that the dog had been shot in the face. The pet sustained extensive damage to its jaw.
“He doesn’t ever leave the property,“ McAllister said. “We have fencing, panels and hot wire so he didn’t go anywhere. He was on our property.”
She said that knowing the dog was shot by what must have been a stray bullet, brought up the concern of gun safety in the area.
“I want to emphasize that we hunt,“ she said. “We shoot competitively, we’re gung-ho about it; and even more so about gun safety.”
McAllister said that she and her family, including two small children, live in a rural area along with the rest of the community where people are hunting birds just a stones throw from their homes.
McAllister said that she cheers when she hears excited hunters who have shot a bird. She said that she hunts doves near her home herself.
“But there’s also been discussion around here that my neighbor is having shotgun shells hit the house,” she said. She added that it’s not safe to have pets and children outside if people can’t follow safety rules.
“People need to respect distance and not shoot towards the house,” she said. “…We actually have the bullet. Everything points to the fact that he was shot close range with either a pistol or possibly a rifle; but we reload…and it looks like a close range pistol.”
Due to the nature of the injury and the amount of blood that was discovered in an area of the home that the dog had access to, McAllister suspects that the dog was either shot in the home or very near it on private property while the family was away that day.
Following a very expensive surgery, Camo is home and recovering with an external device that is currently holding his face together. McAllister said the dog’s jaw had been reduced to powder. If the device doesn’t allow for the dog to heal properly the jaw will eventually need to be removed entirely.
McAllister is asking for community members to report on suspicious activity. She said that a neighbor recalls hearing two gunshots around 7 p.m. the evening of the incident off Pinwheel and Moapa Valley Boulevard. She asks that anyone else who may have seen or heard anything to come forward.
The McAllister family is offering a $500 reward for information regarding the incident. Additional funds are being raised by a community member.
An initial police report was made by Metro Police officers. According to local Metro Sergeant Bret Empey the issue has been turned over to animal control. Empey said that, while police did respond, the evidence does not prove that the incident took place inside the home.
