GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (via WOOD TV) — The victim in an apparent shooting death in Grand Rapids over the weekend was a 15-year-old poodle-terrier mix who weighed 16 pounds and stood a foot high.
"He was just my buddy and I just want to know who would do such a cruel thing to an animal," said Vevily Bailey.
She owned Tigger, but he was also known to others along Sigsbee Street SE because he would often wander the neighborhood, as do other pets.
"He became part of the family to many, from the youngest to the oldest — grandpa Tigger, cousin Tigger, uncle Tigger, brother Tigger. That’s who he was," Bailey said.
Sometime before 5:30 a.m. Saturday, Tigger bolted out the door, as he was apt to do when he wanted to do his business and visit some neighbors. Bailey knew something was wrong within a few minutes.
“I heard six gunshots, I heard three and then there was a slight pause and then there were three more,” Bailey said.
She soon got a call from her daughter.
"She said, 'Well, Tigger is down here at the bus stop. He’s dead. He probably got hit by a car or something.' And I said, 'No, he didn’t get hit by a car, he was murdered,'" Bailey said. "They were probably chasing him because the first three shots was close and there was a pause and the next three shots were even closer."
Bailey said that based on what she knows, the dog was shot nearby and then ran. There was blood in the middle of the street.
"We believe that he collapsed in the street and someone brought him and put him on the bus stop," Bailey said.
In shock, they called police in the afternoon.
"It does look like there was a gunshot wound to the dog," Grand Rapids Police Department Sgt. Cathy Williams said. "Any time you shoot a dog and it was not in self-defense, obviously that’s a crime and this is being investigated by one of our Major Case Team detectives."
After one day of investigating, Williams said there are no suspects.
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