A MIRRABOOKA woman has described the terrifying moment she realised her beloved Labrador had been stabbed in an unprovoked attack.
Twenty-three-year-old Bridgette was exercising her two dogs last night at Apple Blossom Polyantha Reserve when a man she thought was greeting her four-year-old golden Labrador Luna had actually fatally injured her.
“I put my dog in my car and I went to find Luna who I thought would just be sniffing around in a tree doing her own business,” he said.
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“I picked her up and laid her on top of me and felt her heart and I couldn’t feel anything.”
Bridgette said she could not understand the man’s words when she approached him and he had a small brown dog at his side.
“The man instantly bent down (to Luna) and I didn’t hear any snarls, growls, yelps at this stage so I thought everything was fine and I jogged up to approach him to say hello but he put his hood on and walked back behind me,” she said.
“My other dog started barking at him and following him, which I thought was unusual.
“He said ‘go away, gone, get’, he was just mumbling, I couldn’t see his face because he was turned away the whole time.
“He picked his dog up, ran away and jumped the fence, which I thought was also odd.”
It was only when she took Luna to the vet that Bridgette realised the wounds were stab wounds.
“There was so much blood I did not check, I was just covered in blood, I squeezed her as tight as I could,” she said.
“This was a malicious act, on purpose.”
Bridgette described Luna as her “baby” and said she was not an aggressive dog.
Mirrabooka Police Senior Sergeant Neil Morton Smith said the maximum penalty for an act of animal cruelty was five years imprisonment.
“It touches a lot of people because dogs are loving animals and harmless to people and for this to happen it is gut wrenching for everyone involved including police so we are desperate to get some information and speak to the public,” he said.
Sgt Morton-Smith said he would not class the reserve as an unsafe area.
“Police have canvassed the local area for CCTV footage and forensic evidence,” he said.
“We will have a presence here when it does get dark.”
The RSPCA and City of Stirling security team are helping police with inquiries.
The man is described as tall, light skinned with a light-coloured beard and he was wearing a tan-coloured hoodie and dark pants.
Police are appealing for anyone who was in the area at the time to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or report online.
PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has also offered to supply a reward for information leading to the identification and conviction of the person responsible in this matter.
