MAY 18TH 2016.. 4 OF OUR PACK/FAMILY MEMBERS WERE BRUTALLY SHOT TO DEATH OVER A BUTCHER PIG......

 

The worst day of my life! Typical Wednesday morning... get outside and let outside those who slept in the shop that night. Come in, make breakfast for everyone. After everyone ate.. one of the then mothers went back to the side man door of the shop to get let back inside to the nursery where her 6wk old pups were. As she lean against the man door... it opens!! Unfortunately, when the dogs are let out in the morning, I will leave one of the 3 bay doors open to get fresh air inside. So, when the "man door" mistakenly opens, due to the fact it was glitchy and wouldn't successfully click to lock,,,, ALL 8 DOGS WERE AWARE THAT THEY CAN RUN A MUCK OUT THE MAIN BAY DOOR AND DOWN THE STREET!!

 

I was obviously unaware of this! So I'm not completely sure how long they were out by the time a neighbor road his bike to my house and said "I think your dogs are out"!!??  Immediately I was doubting that he was talking about MY dogs.. this was because they literally had just eaten. So I said to my kind neighbor.. " No it can't be mine.. They have full tummies and wouldn't try to "dig" or "jump" the fence. Then I walk out the front door... as I do, I hear MULTIPLE gun shots and whining and yelping from down the street. I think nothing of it as we often hear gun shots out in the country where we live. The yelping, I thought, was the new puppy that my neighbor had just gotten who often was left to cry in a crate :( So I then whistle for my pack ( a whistle that they ALL respond to). Nobody to be seen. I then see that the man door was slightly open!! My heart sank!! I went into panic mode! I whistle again... And here comes Atreyu and Elsa. I put Elsa back into the garage with her 6wk old pups.  I put Atreyu in the house with Seal and Scarlett (they were inside already). I then notice that Makai is in the back yard near the Barn running around, outside of the chicken coup. I grab him and put him on our gated patio. 

 

I then grab my keys and run outside to find Tango sitting at the now CLOSED bay door with blood on chest. I think... crap he killed a neighbors chicken or something. So I put him into the garage in a kennel ( not knowing that he actually had 2 bullets in his precious chest). 

 

I jump in my car and see a few neighbors talking down the street. They then wave me down to them. The man that came to our house to inform me about the dogs tells me to go to his house and talk with his wife right away!! I turn into his driveway and before I could walk to her... their neighbor to the right of their house practically runs to me and says... " Hold it right there!.. I have a permit to carry this thing, (pointing to the gun in a holster on his hip)!! I have called Law Enforcement and they are on their way"!!!

 

It all happened so incredibly fast! I look just over his shoulder to find 3 of my babies laying lifeless in said neighbor's yard, outside of his pig pen. I fall to my knees shaking and out of breath!! Gasping for air... unable to breath. Said neighbor ( name unknown at the time), approaches me and says " here... here..., let me show you what happened". I can't even stand! So he helps me to my feet.. I look at their motionless bodies and lose it again! In my head I'm telling myself " Oh no what did they do to deserve to be shot"? Feeling the guilt that they had done something and there's going to be a law suit because of it. I start apologizing!! Over and Over! He takes me to the pig pen where 2 pigs were standing, still alive , but stressed. ( key point to the story.. BOTH PIGS WERE ALIVE AND STANDING... NO BLOOD FOR ME TO SEE)

 

He then tells me that I think I shot another one of your dogs that ran off ( uh, ya!! He ran off with no trace of dirt from a muddy pig pen on his white socks or white chest...just blood). He says go take care of him, then come back to get the others.  I return to the house and examine Tango who was breathing heavy and laying on his side. I'm telling him its ok boy. He was so tough! But I knew it wasn't good. I put him in the car with the help of my 17yr old son who had just returned home form work. We have a vet about a mile down the road, so I take him there. The vet advised me that due to the location of the bullet holes, that he needs to be put down. I said ok. I was comforting him and loving him with tears and kisses. We were there about 45min. My Tango was gone.. forever gone.

 

I drive back to the neighbors house and the sheriff was there. Oh AND the BUTCHER!! I go up to the pig pen and now one of the pigs is laying on it's side. The neighbor ran inside the pen and came out with the tail of the injured pig. He "said" that they completely bit it off!!! He also said that they had done so much damage that the pigs were going to be butchered that same day ( 1 month early of the scheduled slaughter).

 

This is the "sketchy" part of the story!! I was such a wreck, that it took days for me to put the pieces together! 1. Both pigs were standing the very first time I saw them ! 2. There was no "evidence" of damage on either pig. 3. My dogs were dead outside of the pig pen.. they weren't in the pen. So either they were running as he shot or he physically took them out? That would explain that Tango "RAN" back home! So they were out of the pen. 4. Why didn't he show me the tail the 1st time I was there? He wouldv'e noticed the thing was missing. Plus there wouldv'e been  A LOT of blood !! 5. Why did he need to shoot 14 rounds? Yes you read that correctly.. 14 bullets into 4 dogs!!! There was NO warning shots or action to get them to leave!! WHY??? Because he is the type of individual that was just WAITING for an opportunity to shoot and kill SOMTHING!!! 

 

My son said.. " mom I will get Zoe, Dakota and Peach... I don't want you to worry about doing it". 17 years old and so responsible! He later told me after I had thanked him again, that it would've been like putting your own babies into garbage bags... then he said, " and I couldn't allow that to happen".

 

The sheriff said that due to state law, he was within his legal ( not moral) right to shoot. However, since we lost so much already, it would be like adding insult to injury to fine you for them being on the loose. Thank you Thurston county police department! 

 

This day, September 26h, 2016 ( 4 months after they were shot. & ironically Zoe's birthday) is the 1st time that I put the story of that nightmare of a day, to paper and then to my website for all to read. I had tried before , but, could never get through it.

 

Please enjoy these memorial banners for ZOE - DAKOTA - PEACH - & TANGO.... feel free to leave any comments.