Pet dog shot, killed by hunter who thought it was a coyote, Pennsylvania officials say

A family’s dog was shot and killed by a hunter who mistook it for a coyote, Pennsylvania officials say.

The dog, named Hunter, was out on a walk on the morning of Jan. 7, owner Jennifer Heller said in a Facebook post. Her husband, Chris, was with Hunter and their other dog, Freya, in a wooded area in Berks County.

They were walking along a trail near their house, the post said. Seeing that there were no cars at the entrance and believing that nobody else was around, Chris allowed the dogs to walk unleashed but close by — both wearing collars and harnesses, she said.

He ran into a group of hunters and stopped a moment to speak with them, and they explained they were hunting deer, Heller wrote.

Chris told them he was walking the trail with his two dogs and would be out of their way in a few minutes, according to the post.

As he headed back toward the trail he heard a gunshot.

He ran to Hunter and saw that he’d been hit, scooped the dog into his arms, and headed back toward the group, yelling for help, according to the post.

The hunters helped load Hunter onto a cart “and raced to get him out,” Heller wrote.

“We loaded him in a truck and drove like crazy towards the vet,” she said, but Hunter died before they made it.

“Hunter will be so greatly missed and was loved by our entire family,” Heller wrote. “RIP our beautiful friend.”

Heller says she wants the hunter responsible to be charged, or to have his hunting license taken away.

But that’s not going to happen, according to state officials.

The hunter was part of a group hunting for deer on public land, “in full compliance” with state law, and an “investigation revealed the dog was shot (by) mistake,” the Pennsylvania Game Commission told McClatchy News.

It is also legal to hunt coyotes with just a general hunting license throughout most of the year.

The hunter won’t face any charges or fines, the commission said.

Hunter was an 8-year-old malamute mix the Hellers adopted from Howling Woods Farm in New Jersey, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

One goal of the farm is to “help with rescue and place abandoned or surrendered wolfdogs,” according to the website.

“A Wolfdog, also known as a ‘wolf hybrid’, is simply a dog that has wolf in its family history,” the website said.

This story was originally published January 17, 2023 at 1:29 PM with the headline "Pet dog shot, killed by hunter who thought it was a coyote, Pennsylvania officials say."