Neighborhood dog shot, buried
Nekoosa, WI (US)

Incident Date: Sunday, Aug 1, 2010
County: Wood

Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Alleged

Alleged:
» Gary A. Hurd
» Timothy P. Strangfeld

Two Nekoosa men accused of shooting and burying a dog that wandered into their neighborhood pleaded not guilty to related felony charges in Wood County Circuit Court.

Gary A. Hurd, 56, and Timothy P. Strangfeld, 35, are charged with mistreatment of an animal, causing death. If convicted, they face a maximum of 31/2 years in prison.

During hearings Dec. 22, Wood County Humane Officer Nanci Kinney said she received a report Aug. 1 that someone shot a dog, according to court records. Strangfeld told her there was a stray dog on his property, he tied it to a trampoline, and it later bit him. He and Hurd decided to shoot the dog.

Wood County Circuit Judge Todd Wolf found probable cause to continue the proceedings, despite motions from both men's attorneys to dismiss the cases.

Neither man denied shooting and burying the dog, but they said they had good reasons to do so.

According to court documents filed by Hurd in support of dismissing the case, the dog, with no tags or collar, entered his property July 18 and stayed near the property a good portion of the day. When Hurd realized the dog wasn't going to leave, he offered it food and water and planned to take it to an animal shelter if it was still there the next day.

Later, after Hurd entered his home, he heard screaming and ran out to discover the dog had attacked Strangfeld's rabbit, upsetting Strangfeld's children, according to court records.

The dog also "went after" Strangfeld's children, the document said. Hurd yelled at the dog to stop and, when it did, he grabbed the animal by the collar, which Strangfeld previously had put on the animal. The dog bit Hurd's free hand, causing the hand to gush blood.

Hurd went into the house to get his pistol, and Strangfeld went into his home to get his rifle. When Hurd came back out, the dog darted toward him, and he shot it, the document said. The two men went to the dog, which had been shot in the chest, and Strangfeld shot it in the head to ensure it wasn't suffering, according to the documents filed by Hurd's attorney. The two men then buried the dog in Strangfeld's garden so his children wouldn't see it and become upset.

Documents filed by Strangfeld told a similar story to Hurd's statement. Strangfeld added that the dog slipped out of its collar before it bit Hurd, and it jumped at Strangfeld's wife. While Hurd tried to again restrain the dog, it turned and bit him.

According to the criminal complaints, a Nekoosa man was watching the dog for a friend when the dog got away from him the morning of July 18. The Nekoosa man put up posters around the neighborhood trying to find the dog. On Aug. 11, he was approached by another man, who said Hurd and Strangfeld shot the animal.

According to the motions filed by the two men's attorneys, state laws allow a person to kill a dog if the person is threatened with serious bodily harm by the dog and other restraining actions were attempted.

References

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