‘That’s not just a dog to me, it’s my family’
Puppy shot in Blanc-sablon, owner hopes perpetrator will be found
After his dog was shot, a Blanc-sablon man is hoping that the perpetrators will be held responsible and that his dog undergoes a healthy recovery. Around 7:20 p.m. on Monday, May 28, Robi Fequet’s eightmonth-old Australian Shepherd puppy Figis returned home bleeding with several lead beads shot through his legs.
Fequet had let Figis and his other five-month-old dog outside after supper that night, to roam the open field and hills behind his home in Blanc-sablon.
“We let them out there often to chase around rabbits and stuff like that,” he said. But this evening, the dogs had gone past the hills and wandered into the village just outside of the Labrador Straits.
Fifteen minutes later the two dogs returned home and Fequet was shocked to see the pools of blood and wounds on three of Figis’ legs.
“His back leg was the worst, it had 10 holes into it,” Fequet said.
“At first I thought he may have gotten hooked on a fence, but when I looked at the injuries I found two lead beads that I picked out.”
Fequet suspects that the dogs were shot on someone’s property. Both of his dogs had tags with names and phone numbers on them.
On Tuesday he reported the incident to police and an investigation is underway. The night of the shooting Fequet took the dog to a local nurse who bandaged the puppy up.
According to Fequet, the nurse told him that the dog’s wounds are not life threatening and it appears none of his legs are broken. He has since given the dog some antibacterial ointments to prevent any infection and he plans to take Figis to a veterinarian in the coming days.
Currently, Figis is not able to walk. Fequet is hopeful his dog will recover and does not suffer permanent physical damage. “Right now he can’t even stand up, and when I went to the other room he tried to drag himself across the floor to follow,” Fequet said. “I’m sure he’ll be able to walk again, but I don’t know how long it will take.
“The dog runs with me on the bike and Ski-doo and I’m wondering if he’ll be able to do that anymore. I’m hoping it doesn’t impede on his normal life.”
Fequet is also hopeful this does not cause psychological damage on his dog, such as a permanent fear of guns or strangers.
Thus far, he says a lot of local people have commented on his Facebook post about the incident, but no one has come forward and pointed out a suspect yet. Fequet feels certain the shooting was not accidental.
“Everyone in the village owns a gun so you can’t really point any fingers,” he said.
“It was an intentional shot; they shot at his legs so has not to kill him. They could’ve just scared them off and shot into the air.” From ensuring the health and safety of his dog, filing a report to police and going back to work on little sleep, it’s been a hectic time for Fequet.
His major aim is to ensure Figis is kept healthy on the mend, and that police can found whoever was responsible for the shooting.
“He’s an affectionate dog – he’s not aggressive and is used to being social. That’s not just a dog to me, it’s my family,” Fequet said.
“I want this to get out, I want people to know this kind of thing isn’t okay.”