[CNN Newsource]
PLACERVILLE, California – A California couple is upset after someone shot their rescue dog.
The couple wants justice but they’re not sure if they’ll get it.
“We tried to give him the best we possibly could. We tried,” said Linnea Uggla.
Linnea Uggla can’t look at pictures of Red without bursting into tears.
“The moment you wake up and – he’s not there,” said Linnea.
Her husband Randy, still carrying his collar.
“I just take it everywhere with me, I don’t wanna leave him, you know,” said Randy.
Randy and Linnea have four rescue dogs.
They adopted Red, an 8 month old husky, in August 2020.
The abuse he endured, so egregious, he needed a $7,000 dollar surgery to repair a ruptured ear drum.
Linnea had just removed his post-surgery cone, when he escaped from the family’s back yard on Sunday.
“I feel like if i had left it on him he might – he might not have been shot,” said Linnea.
The couple searched everywhere…
“We made loops we made circles we went up every road he could possibly be we had neighbors out looking for him I was posting to NextDoor,” said Linnea.
The pain of not finding him quickly gave way to panic after hearing two terrifying and distinctive sounds.
“Pow and then 30 seconds later pow. Again. And then that was it,” said Randy.
Red was discovered a day later, shot dead in a ditch less than a mile from their home.
“We just wanted our boy back we didn’t want him rotting in a ditch,” said Linnea.
In California, it’s illegal to maliciously and intentionally kill an animal.
The crime carries a penalty of up to three years in jail or prison.
The only time its considered legal is if the animal is on your property, and is dangerous to life, limb, or property.
The couple says Red has no history of aggression. They have filed a complaint with animal control.