PETA Offers Up to $5,000 Reward in New Dog-Killing Case

For Immediate Release:
September 5, 2023

Contact:
Sara Groves 202-483-7382

PETA is offering up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for fatally shooting a dog near the intersection of Bell Telephone and Roza Creek roads on August 20.

According to Pasado’s Safe Haven, a father and daughter found the 4-year-old female brown mastiff-type dog, who had sustained two bullet wounds, in the L.T. Murray Wildlife Area. The family sought help, but the dog succumbed to her injuries on the way to a veterinary clinic. She was wearing a camouflage-color buckle collar. Photos are available here. (Warning: graphic images.)

The Yakima County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the case but has yet to make any arrests, so PETA is asking for the public’s help.

This case follows a recent spate of dog killings in the area—from March to May, five dogs were found dead and showed signs of severe abuse, including starvation and injuries consistent with blunt force trauma. PETA, Pasado’s Safe Haven, and its partners are offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction in those killings, which aren’t believed to be related to the most recent case.

“Someone not only shot this dog twice but also left her to suffer and die,” says PETA Senior Vice President Colleen O’Brien. “Given the string of dog killings in Yakima County, PETA urges everyone to consider all dogs in the area at risk and to take precautions, and we urge anyone with information about any of these killings to come forward immediately before anyone else gets hurt.”

Tips can be submitted via the tip line at 1-800-222-TIPS or on the Yakima County Crime Stoppers’ website at www.crimestoppersyakco.org.

PETA points out that companion animals are safest when kept indoors to prevent them from being hit by cars, poisoned, infected with fatal diseases, or tortured and killed by cruel people. The group also recommends that dog guardians leash their canine companions and keep them in secure harnesses during walks.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information about PETA’s investigative newsgathering and reporting, please visit PETA.org, listen to The PETA Podcast, or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.