Whitehorse Daily Star

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Photo by Vince Fedoroff

RCMP SUMMONED – A dead dog was found in this dumpster outside the Copper Road Veterinary clinic this week. Police are investigating.

Dog believed to have been beaten, shot

The city’s bylaw department and RCMP are investigating how a black Labrador’s carcass came to be dumped into a garbage dumpster in the Marwell area.

By Stephanie Waddell on March 20, 2015

The city’s bylaw department and RCMP are investigating how a black Labrador’s carcass came to be dumped into a garbage dumpster in the Marwell area.

Bylaw education constable Kyle Morrison said Wednesday both police and bylaw officers were called to the area around noon Tuesday after reports came in about it.

Officers found the dog’s carcass in the garbage dumpster.

It was evident the animal had been dead for some time before the carcass was dumped.

However, an investigation is underway to determine if there was any foul play prior to the death or if it’s only a case of the improper disposal of an animal’s carcass.

It is currently in the care of a veterinarian to look at the cause of death as part of the investigation.

Meanwhile, Kona’s Coalition has started a fund-raising campaign on gofundme.com to offer a reward for information.

A description on the local organization’s website alleges it is the “worst case of animal cruelty in Yukon history.”

It describes a witness noticing a dog’s leg sticking out of a dumpster and goes on to describe the dog as female and between six months to a year old.

“She had healed scars all over her body, indicating long-term abuse,” it reads, going on to allege the dog was the victim of blunt force trauma, noting numerous fractures.

It also appeared the animal was shot at close range, with a bullet entering behind its ear and coming out the front of her head.

One leg was completely severed from the body, notes the description.

“She wore a black leather collar with some white on it,” reads the gofundme campaign. “She had eaten a meal prior to enduring her final savage beating. She was not emaciated, meaning someone had been feeding her.”

It then notes the importance of contacting bylaw services with any information on the case.

A total of $120 has been raised so far.

Comments (29)

Up 0 Down 0

Sarah on May 5, 2015 at 1:18 pm

Wow! Only 30 thousand people live in Whitehorse and over a month later the perp hasn't been convicted... wow. Hard to believe,

Up 0 Down 1

Sarah on Apr 13, 2015 at 8:38 am

No wonder there are so many "missing and murdered" aboriginal women with creeps like this on the loose!

Up 8 Down 1

north_of_60 on Mar 24, 2015 at 5:41 pm

If cruelty is involved then it is a criminal code offense and charges should be laid.
Let's hope that whatever information is discovered will not be covered up by the justice business, like with the Trevor incident. As long as excuses are made for deviant behavior it will continue.

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Josey Wales on Mar 24, 2015 at 1:35 pm

Hey Reality Check...indeed you're very observant. My shot at someone being cheap was more a shot at our overlords of taxation and the "tipping fees" for an animal disposal between $7-$15. There are pages of extra taxes they tax us on there, of course for "Planet Earth"...as you know a carcass is very un-organic and exactly the same as a TV, an ol' tire, a mattress etc. (absolute TOTAL sarcasm for those without a meter).
I too thought of a car impact, and a owner shot pooch. Of course I was also VERY generous in my "benefit of doubt" as my cynical inside alarms were very very loud. Hell even I get generous from time to time...we will see how "this one" plays out.
If never a word spoke? Trevor 2.0 it is.
Charges brought forward? Then illustrates the racism of lower expectations, and the suggested guilt of "one of us" that ARE held to a higher level of criminal accountability was involved/responsible.
Since we seem to be grabbing the pitchforks and heading out for a witch hunt...
Up for Trevor 2.0...down for Josey is a dick, moderator get ready...OJW

...poor pooch and poor us for potential of having a HE/SHE scumbag at large.
yes indeed, sugar and spice ain't always that nice...EITHER for complete "inclusion" wishing not too be sexist as many here are.

Up 4 Down 5

Josey Wales on Mar 24, 2015 at 12:14 pm

Hey Max Mack...I read her post as suggesting she is better informed than you, not so much a personal attack. Mind you for her to use the term "evidence" in regards to CBC, FB, and Dr.Pottie (as you illustrated needs to qualify his forensic cred.) reads much into the post.

She freely expressed her disagreeing with your POV IMHO..not a personal attack.
If you wish to read those? Follow my posts you'll get heaps of opportunities to see what a personal attack reads like...been near a week since one..I must be due?

Up 15 Down 11

Reality Check on Mar 24, 2015 at 12:10 pm

These comments are amazing!!! Psychopath!, Sociopath!, Someone's leaving clues!, must be more than one individual involved!, this person is a monster! Public safety is at risk! Police should go door to door!

OMG, people, get a grip. Of course this is a terrible thing, poor dog, I'm sure it did nothing to deserve this type of treatment, but wow.. these comments are so entertaining.
Also I read the articles, and watched the interview of Dr. Pottie and it is very clear there is some sensational journalism going on here. "Severe blunt force trauma" can mean hit by a car, but that doesn't sound as gory right?
"AnimalLover" still has the best comments, the accomplice theory is great! A little too much CSI shows for people these days.
Theory - Dog lives a hard life as a pup, gets in a few scraps, get some scars, dog grows up, owner loves dog... dog gets hit by vehicle. Blunt force trauma results in multiple fractures dislodged eye. Dog is suffering, driver tries to shoot dog, but is nervous, doesn't have a steady hand. Takes 2 shots. Takes dog to owner, and owner puts dog in freezer because you cant bury it in frozen ground. Owner orders half a side of beef and has no more room in the freezer so decides to dump the dog. Boom case solved... But that wouldn't make the news right? You couldn't use headlines like "Yukon worst case of animal cruelty"
Apparently no one has read a book about the gold rush horses eh?

Up 20 Down 4

NorthernLight on Mar 23, 2015 at 6:18 pm

The situation is terrible and sad. However, I also notice a lot of people jumping to conclusions about RCMP & Bylaw not investigating the matter. Those who have not jumped to conclusions and have spoken to a few officers already know and understand there is a detailed investigation under way. Let those in their particular field investigate to try and determine what had happened without outside interference. I'm quite sure when there is any type of investigation from the RCMP or Bylaw, people normally don't hear all the information when the matter is ongoing. I'm quite sure that's pretty normal for any Department you work in, enforcement or not. Don't jump to conclusions when you don't know what's been taking place.

Up 7 Down 32

Max Mack on Mar 23, 2015 at 4:51 pm

@Disgusted Yukon Chick

Your personal attack against me is completely unwarranted. But since you've opened that door, perhaps you should answer the following questions:

Is Dr. Pottie a forensic pathologist?
Has Dr. Pottie received any training in performing forensic autopsies? If so, perhaps Dr. Pottie could provide a list of the forensic experts under whom he has trained?
How many forensic autopsies involving potential abuse has Dr. Pottie performed?
Have you considered alternative explanations, or is the psychopath explanation just a convenient excuse for you to soapbox?
Perhaps you should expand your search for knowledge rather than jump on convenient explanations.

Up 8 Down 4

Person of the North on Mar 23, 2015 at 4:44 pm

It is sad that most likely even if this person is caught, they will receive nothing more than a fine of $1000 or less. And then they cannot own an animal for 2 or 5 years. So you are telling me that someone this insane is going to have the option of adopting an animal in a few years? There is something wrong with that. Not to mention it is sad that people continue to say that we need police involvement simply because this person may move to abusing humans next. What about the Labrador? Is her life not of value enough to deserve a police presence and a jail sentence? Sadly Jane will most likely never see justice. Here's to hoping that someday the government and society in itself will stop seeing animals as lesser beings and treat their abuse just as seriously as though it were a human. You think that person would have tortured Jane if he or she had a possible 25 year sentence to face? Let us consider that.

Up 14 Down 3

AnimalLover on Mar 23, 2015 at 1:23 pm

Just some thoughts....reading the articles, it seems there could likely be 2+ individuals involved, so someone somewhere knows something but is afraid to tell.

On one hand, you have the psychopath who inflicted all the multitude of injuries over a period of time - sawing off a foot, gouging eyes, shooting the jaw, dismembering the limbs, then freezing the body.

Then you have someone who fed the dog regularly, put a collar on (albeit with no license, I understand), and brought the body to the dumpster, to a place it was sure to be found - right next to a vet clinic.

I know both personalities can be found in one psychotic sociopath, but I find the polar opposites could well point to two individuals being involved. And the one who dumped the body could be scared stiff of the other person, and may be going through hell.

Just my amateur views...I find it hard to believe just one person is involved.

Up 7 Down 6

WantingASafeCommunity on Mar 23, 2015 at 8:49 am

Donate here: http://www.gofundme.com/pdy9v4 Money will go towards the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of this psychopath

Up 17 Down 15

DisgustedYukonChick on Mar 22, 2015 at 9:11 pm

I would like to know:

- Why isn't RCMP involved, interviewing people nearby, posting rewards? Why is it up to Kona's Coalition, a fine nonprofit. It should be pursued by the police. This is the work of a psychopath, a danger to this small community. I, for one, no longer feel safe here.

- Why hasn't the Mae Bachur shelter made any comment to the media? They have a chance to show some leadership here, but have been totally silent. THEY should be posting a reward, even looking at their adoption records. I know they have a lot of female black labs...but maybe the dental records would show something. Don't know. But for the animal shelter to be silent, even on their Facebook page, is curious. There is a chance Jane came from the shelter...I would like to see their interviewing and referencing of potential adopters to be tighter. It seems anyone who waves $300 can get a dog...

- Bylaw is not capable of doing a criminal investigation. Bylaw officers issue tickets for parking, and expired dog licenses. The times I have had to call Bylaw about possible animal abuse I've witnessed, they spent more time questioning people about buying a license, than questioning their care.

I call on the RCMP to respond to the community - we have a right to safety, to the proper people need to be investigating. Bylaw isn't it.

-- And finally (for this post)...why aren't local vets required by law to report animal abuse when they see it on an animal brought in for care? They should be reporting people who cause dislocated limbs, gunshot wounds, cowering animals obviously afraid of the owners. But no, they stay silent. And who would they report to? A shelter that stays silent in face of a catastrophe that rocks the community? Bylaw officers whose training was in construction or sales?

Jane's death will not be in vain. I, and other people who care about animals and the truly horrific attitudes up here in the glorious north, will see to it. There are elections coming up, and we will make it an issue.

Up 15 Down 7

Disgusted Yukon Chick on Mar 22, 2015 at 8:58 pm

Max Mack - this isn't a case of a dog being run over by a car and disposed of. You would do well to read the articles, and especially view the interview done with Dr. Pottie, from Copper Rd. Vet, who did the autopsy. Repeated beatings with scar tissue from previous abuse, eyes gouged out and no longer in their sockets, gunshot in her cheek, legs dislocated and no longer attached - and a sawed off foot. Then she had been frozen, as in a freezer, before being dumped.

So ''before jumping to conclusions", you would do well to view the evidence. CBC Yukon on Facebook has the Dr. Pottie interview in gory detail.

This isn't about disposing an animal who was run over by a car. You need to get your facts.

Up 12 Down 2

Bobby Bitman on Mar 22, 2015 at 4:56 pm

The article says an investigation is underway to see if this was improper disposal of an animal carcass or whether animal abuse occured. The responsibility for deciding this is sitting in the hands of a veterinarian. Let's hope we have a clear answer either way. It would be a relief to know the poor pup was hit by a car seen as that would be the 'best scenario'.

But if this was the result of the actions of a psychopath, we need to know that too and that person must be caught.

The sickest of the sick torture animals, often before moving on to children or other humans. Luka Magnotta (aka Eric Neuman), Jeffrey Dahlmer, etc. Not to mention that "60% of 50 New Jersey families that received treatment for child abuse also had animals in the household that had been abused."

If you know something and come forward, you might be helping out some kid.

This is extremely serious people, and if you know anything it's best for all concerned to come forward with the information now. If the maggot Eric Neuman had of been stopped when he was 'only' torturing and killing kittens and posting it to the internet, he would not be spending the rest of his life in jail for murdering an international student. For instance.

All ears open, all eyes open. Report anything and everything if you know of an animal abuser or have some suspicion as to what happened, based on something you know.

Thank you to all who are working toward getting to the bottom of this.

Up 7 Down 7

Dear Jane on Mar 21, 2015 at 11:47 pm

For people wanting to donate to Justice for Jane please use this link: http://de.gofund.me/justiceforjane

Up 20 Down 3

FNS on Mar 21, 2015 at 11:44 pm

I saw them when they were moving the dog's body. I work in the area. I think it is telling where they left the dog and maybe a clue. They could have thrown the dog anywhere in the woods, covered her in snow, or any other dumpster in town. But they chose a place where it would be discovered. They chose the dumpster right by the Animal shelter and Vet where it would be discovered.

Up 5 Down 6

DisgustedYukonChick on Mar 21, 2015 at 3:31 pm

Here is the link to donate: http://www.gofundme.com/pdy9v4

Perhaps if a reward is offered, police might get some tips. Somebody knows something....

Up 19 Down 9

DisgustedYukonChick on Mar 21, 2015 at 3:18 pm

This is the work of a psychopath, who is likely to do it again, if he hasn't already. I want to know why the RCMP has passed this over to Bylaw - this isn't a case of a dog being deprived water, food and shelter! This is the work of someone who is dangerous to all of us in Whitehorse. You don't inflict multiple injuries over a period of time, including sawing off a foot!, and then shoot and throw the carcass in a dumpster right next to a vet clinic - unless you want to be found. I want to know where the RCMP is in all this? This isn't a matter of a ticket for an expired dog license! This is public safety at risk. I, for one, want the RCMP to go door to door on Copper Road, interviewing shop staff to see if anything untoward had happened. Somebody saw something...somebody heard something...somebody knows something. As for the donation site, I agree the GoFundMe link is difficult to find...but you can contact Jordi Mikeli-Jones on Facebook - she is the founder of Kona's Coalition. There is always a way, and I hope we can put public pressure on the RCMP to actually do their job.
My building had 2 breakins this past week, plus with the assaults, etc. lately in this town - nobody is ever found to convict. But first, this case has to be seen as a psychopathic criminal case - and the public safety is at risk here. And to the perpetrator, whoever you are, do the right thing for once in your life - call the RCMP, Bylaw, a vet clinic, bylaw - anybody - and take responsibility for what you did. Karma will get you in the end, and you will never have a night's sleep knowing you did this. You're a sick individual. Violence often starts with animals, then moves on to people. If anyone knows anything - if someone had a black lab and inexplicably doesn't have the dog anymore, if you heard a dog screaming and did nothing, if you saw a dog with multiple wounds, cowering - now is the time to speak up. Please.

Up 7 Down 37

hmm on Mar 21, 2015 at 12:33 pm

June, most likely this person has had very similar done to them.

Up 31 Down 6

Maureen N on Mar 21, 2015 at 10:42 am

I hope that the police find this vile, disgusting person and that the punishment for him is not the usual slap on the wrist.
To think that such a person lives in my neighbourhood makes me feel physically ill. To think that this creep could very well be in contact with children makes me feel even sicker.

The correlation between animal abusers and those who go on to torture, maim and kill humans is well documented so if others in this city are just shrugging this off as "who cares , its just a dog" then they should really think again.

Poor, poor dog. What she must have suffered. She did not deserve the tortures she endured. And of course it is probable that another dog is experiencing the same horrors right now.

Up 28 Down 3

north_of_60 on Mar 21, 2015 at 1:41 am

Criminal Code of Canada - Animal Cruelty
Causing unnecessary suffering

Section 445.1
(1) Every one commits an offence who

(a) wilfully causes or, being the owner, wilfully permits to be caused unnecessary pain, suffering or injury to an animal or a bird;

(2) Every one who commits an offence under subsection (1) is guilty of

(a) an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years; or

(b) an offence punishable on summary conviction and liable to a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars or to imprisonment for a term of not more than eighteen months or to both.

Lets hope the persons responsible for this indictable offense are apprehended and punished to the fullest extent of the law, regardless of any racial identity.

Up 21 Down 11

June Jackson on Mar 21, 2015 at 12:49 am

We have a monster in our midst...
Whoever this is has been at it for a long time..no one turns into something evil overnight..somewhere there is a record of a child abusing animals..some one has or has had this person as their friend and knows he is psychotic.. So..do we thank the courts for perhaps letting another predator loose? Do we thank the mother that knew something was wrong with her child and did nothing? Do we thank the dept of social services who knew there was a sociopath in the making and did not intervene? Or perhaps the child psychiatrist who thinks her/his patient can be salvaged..
It sickens me that he will soon be looking for another victim, if he doesn't have one already..

Up 9 Down 12

Josey Wales on Mar 20, 2015 at 11:22 pm

OK ...wtf?
Man I sure hope this is a case of a cheap moron that tossed their dead dog Vs. some scumbag torturing her as is suggested in this diddy.
These days in this "new" Whitehorse...nothing would surprise me anymore.
Hope I never see s**t like this article is suggesting.

...yes I know, FP yet to be determined...got it...

Up 29 Down 4

Yukonkid on Mar 20, 2015 at 11:01 pm

How shameful!
Somebody in our City of Whitehorse would do something horrible like this?
Whoever you are, you deserve this beating! Man's best friend, always there by your side, does not ask anything of you, only looks for your care, love and attention, to be fed, never a harm to you - with those eyes of love seeking you - how could you? You really are disgraceful to our society. Please seek professional help, turn yourself in to authorities and accept your punishment! No other animal needs to fear from sick you! Absolutely the worst to hear and read. I hope you are found!

Up 27 Down 5

Jacklyn on Mar 20, 2015 at 6:18 pm

The person(s) who did this is a danger to our community. This type of violent torture and murder of an animal is consistence with profiles leading to abuse of humans including children. We must do all we can to find the person responsible. Stephanie Waddell can you please keep us posted on developments? I see gruesome details were left out of the article. As I understand there is no question this dog was brutally tortured and murdered. She was approx a year old. I feel there may be other victims still alive we could save. The reward is currently over $3000. Lets come together as a community.

Up 24 Down 4

Brian Young on Mar 20, 2015 at 5:56 pm

Oh, gee not again. Look people if you can't take care of a dog; because of money issues, you're having a bad day, you're on drugs, any of these problems there are ways to get help. The Humane Society Yukon, Kona's Coalition and any veterinary clinic in the Yukon can help.

Up 26 Down 22

Max Mack on Mar 20, 2015 at 5:52 pm

While this may be a case of animal cruelty, we should be careful about jumping to conclusions. For example, the animal could have been run over by a vehicle and then "put out of its misery." Explanations other than "abuse" could also exist for the other observations made, e.g. healed scars, etc.

Hopefully, the vet will be able to make an informed, objective decision about the case.

Up 34 Down 6

June Jackson on Mar 20, 2015 at 5:50 pm

Someone knows something about this. I hope the person who did this gets the exact same thing done to him/her. Even as I write this I am thinking.. I sure hope karma is coming for you.

Up 8 Down 2

Wanting to help on Mar 20, 2015 at 5:09 pm

Unable to find the fundraiser on gofundme.com under Whitehorse or kona's coalition or on Kona coalition webpage.... Any word where we can find to donate?

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