Vandals cut fences at Animal Shelter
Four dogs got loose, but all returned when staff arrived.
On Thursday morning, animal shelter manager Laurie May discovered vandalism had happened overnight at the Bella Vista Shelter.
Mays came in Thursday morning but didn’t see anything amiss. When she took one of the dogs that lives in the office out for his morning walk, another dog ran up to her. She recognized him as a shelter resident, so she investigated.
The fences behind three of the pens had been cut, allowing four dogs to escape, she said. A fifth dog was inside one of the damaged runs, but did not leave. While she was looking at the damage two more dogs returned on their own. The fourth dog came back about an hour later, she said.
The shelter’s cameras show that the dogs stayed close to their enclosures all night and one of them actually went in and then out several times.
Animal control officer Amber Bowman of the Police Department said the case is being investigated and someone could be charged with trespassing and criminal mischief.
Mays said she didn’t know why anyone would want to let the dogs out of their enclosures. Because all the dogs were accounted for, she doesn’t think anyone was trying to steal a dog.
The shelter has had similar vandalism in the past, she said. A few years ago someone came in at night and opened all the care doors, allowing all the dogs to escape. Despite the shelter being close to a well-traveled highway, no dogs have been hurt.
Mays said the damage to the fences may cost $700. The shelter is not part of the city of Bella Vista. It is an independent nonprofit that raises money through events, including the Wiener Take All Dachshund Races and Pars for Paws Golf Tournament.