SPCA Offers Reward After Puppy Found Fatally Shot In LI Nature Preserve

 MATTITUCK, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A $1,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person who shot and killed a puppy on Long Island.

Suffolk County SPCA Chief Roy Gross said the 14-week-old border collie mix was found wrapped in a plastic bag that was dumped along a trail at Laurel Lake Preserve in Mattituck on Friday.

"It was an innocent dog that was shot and killed and discarded like yesterday's garbage," Gross told WCBS 880.

Gross said the pup had been shot several times and still had pellets in its body.

The SPCA will conduct a necropsy on the puppy to determine the cause of death and determine what kind of firearm was used.

"We're not certain if they're from buckshot or a rifle or a pellet gun. We don't know," Gross told WCBS 880.

Gross said whoever was behind the dog's death could face jail time for federal animal cruelty charges.

"This is a blatant act of animal cruelty and we will do everything we can to see that those responsible are apprehended," he said.

Anyone with information about who might have killed the puppy is urged to call the SPCA at 631-382-7722.

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