These aren’t attack dogs. They’re not guard dogs or dogs in yards where they don’t belong.
They’re just family pets, and someone in Socorro County shot them dead in their yards. In all, eight animals have been confirmed shot, seven of which died or had to be put down.
Another two dogs are missing after their owners reported hearing gunshots near their homes, said Shorty Vaiza, chief deputy at the Socorro County Sheriff’s Office.
The shootings, most in the Lemitar/Polvadera area 6 to 9 miles north of Socorro, were first reported Dec. 14, Vaiza said.
“Whoever is doing the shootings is actually going into these properties and shooting the dogs,” he said.
The Sheriff’s Office is investigating these crimes as related to one another, Vaiza said.
One dog, a 3-year-old mutt named Sally, was shot in the head and lived, according to a report on KOAT-TV.
Based on the wound on that dog, Vaiza said, deputies believe the shooter was in a vehicle at the time, and Sally may have walked over to see who it was before getting shot.
Animal Protection of New Mexico is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and prosecution. Whether a tip was substantial enough to lead to the arrest, as well as who gave that tip, will be determined when the case is over, said Alan Edmonds, the organization’s cruelty case manager.
Extreme animal cruelty is a fourth-degree felony.
Another dog, a 2-year-old schnauzer, was shot and killed in the yard of its southeast Rio Rancho home over the weekend. The incidents are likely unrelated, a Rio Rancho Police spokesman said.
Anyone with information regarding the deaths of these animals should call the Attorney General’s Animal Cruelty Hot Line at 877-5HUMANE (877-548-6263).
— This article appeared on page C1 of the Albuquerque Journal
