Redlands Woman Raises Money To Pay Vet Bills After Security Guard Shoots Her Dog

REDLANDS (CBSLA.com) — A Redlands woman says her dog was shot by an apartment building security guard early Monday morning when she briefly left the dog unattended outside.

Now she's trying to raise money to pay her vet bills and hoping Castro, her Red Heeler Cattledog, survives.

Dianne Price said on her GoFundMe page she was walking Castro and a second dog off-leash at about 4:30 a.m. when she noticed her daughter's bedroom light was on.

Price says she went back into her apartment to tell her daughter to get ready for school when she heard a gunshot.

She ran outside fearing the worst and saw the security guard walking towards his car.

According to Price, the security guard told her, "Your dog is dead" because "(h)e growled at me."

Price began frantically searching for Castro, and found him three hours later a couple blocks away, surrounded by Redlands police officers, she said.

The dog was shot through his nose and the bullet exited his neck.

Castro is undergoing surgery and will possibly need dental work. Price says vet bills thus far have amounted to about $2,000.

Price was fined $200 for not having Castro on a leash and for the dog being unregistered.

The Redlands Police Department told the Redlands Daily Facts that the security guard was attacked by Castro.

Price, however, disputes that account.

"I don't see how all of that could've happened in the time it took for me to walk to my bedroom and get back to my hallway, when I heard the gunshot," she said.

Price is hoping to raise $2,500 through her GoFundMe page to pay her vet bills.

"I love this dog. Everyone loves this guy, and he doesn't deserve any of this," she said.