Still no suspect in Thurston County dog death

The circumstances that led to a dog’s death near Summit Lake are still a mystery, according to Thurston County Animal Services.

However, donations from Humane Society of the United States members and others have increased the reward for helpful information from $10,000 to $25,000, said Officer Erika Johnson.

“This case has generated a lot of response from the community,” Johnson said. “Animal cases usually get a large response, and this is a particularly horrific one.”

Johnson is asking anyone who wants to contribute to the reward to call Pasado’s Safe Haven, which contributed a large portion of the original reward. Pasado’s can be reached at 360-793-9393.

The dog, a brown and white pit bull, was found hanging from a tree branch on March 21. The dog was alive when it was hanged, and she showed signs of sexual abuse.

The dog was spayed, so she likely was a pet at one time, Johnson said. No one has come forward to say the dog was theirs.

Johnson said that if a suspect is identified, that person will likely be charged with first-degree animal cruelty, a class C felony. If the suspect is convicted, the person could serve jail time. In the 2006 legislative session, animal cruelty laws were amended to include bestiality.

Several people have called Animal Services with tips, but so far there is no concrete information, Johnson said.

Anyone with information about the dog’s death is asked to call Johnson at 360-352-2510.

This story was originally published April 1, 2016 at 12:43 PM with the headline "Still no suspect in Thurston County dog death."