Shot dog despair

By Monique Ebrington
THE death of a pet dog in Launching Place has raised fears about people shooting guns in residential areas.
Lilydale resident Suzanne Henderson told the Mail she now avoided leaving her house after her nine-year-old dog, Jeda, was gunned down on a morning walk.
Ms Henderson was visiting her boyfriend in Launching Place when the incident happened.
She was walking along McMahons Road with her boyfriend and his two dogs when Jeda was shot. She is devastated by the loss of the koolie-retriever cross she said was her “best mate”.
“We were just walking along. Jeda was off the lead and exploring in bushes ahead of us – she was no more than 500 metres away from us,” Ms Henderson said.
“We heard a shot but … we had heard stories about hunters in the area,” she said, struggling to come to terms with the circumstances around Jeda’s death.
“We didn’t think anything of it, until she didn’t come back,” Ms Henderson said.
Unable to find Jeda the pair returned home and returned to search by car.
Ms Henderson said she found Jeda at Yarra Valley Quarries in a pool of blood.
“I found her half-bleeding to death there, so it was pretty horrific for me,” she said.
They rushed Jeda to a vet in Seville but she could not be saved.
Warburton police Sergeant Paul Bell said the shooter was on Crown land and may have been shooting blindly.
“It’s a populous place; no one should be discharging a fire arm in that area,” Sgt Bell said.
“They would have seen it was a dog and if they didn’t then people shooting at things they can’t see is a real issue.
“To shoot a domestic dog is just a hideous thing to do,” he said.
“If someone is shooting and hasn’t realised that they’ve hit a dog, then that’s even worse.”
Ms Henderson rarely goes on walks since the shooting on Monday 27 July and said that because of hunters she no longer felt safe in Launching Place.
“It could have easily been us (who were shot) because we weren’t far away,” she said. “I don’t know what anyone’s doing shooting at that time of the morning, on a Monday and in a built-up area near houses.”
She described the shooting as stupid and nasty. “I don’t know how people could go about shooting other people’s dogs,” she said.
“I had her for nine-and-a-half years and she was, basically, my best mate.
“I want an apology and retribution; otherwise Jeda died in vain.”
Police are seeking assistance from the public in relation to the shooting or any illegal shooting in the Upper Yarra.
Anyone with information should contact Warburton police on 5966 2006 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.