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Sheriff’s officials: Dog bitten, not shot in Lancaster backyard

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In a Facebook post, dated Sept. 30, Lancaster resident Richard Bryant shared a picture of his deceased dog, Mylo, and claimed the dog had been shot while roaming in the backyard. The graphic portion of the photo has been removed. To view the unedited screenshot, click the image. To view Bryant’s Facebook post, click here.
In a Facebook post, dated Sept. 30, Lancaster resident Richard Bryant shared a picture of his deceased dog, Mylo, and claimed the dog had been shot while roaming in the backyard. The graphic portion of the photo has been removed. To view the unedited screenshot, click the image. To view Bryant’s Facebook post, click here.

LANCASTER – A dog thought to have been shot to death in a Lancaster backyard this week was actually bitten by a larger dog or some other animal, authorities said Thursday.

“Today a necropsy was performed on the dog, and the doctor performing the necropsy determined that the dog was never shot,” said Lt. Steve Sylvies of the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station. “The dog had been bitten by a larger dog or other type of predator, causing numerous puncture wounds around the neck and crushing the vertebrae.”

The Lancaster Sheriff’s Station received a call Tuesday morning (Sept. 30) regarding a dog found dead in the backyard of a residence in the 42500 block of 30th Street West, according to Lancaster Community Relations Deputy Miguel Ruiz. Deputies responded to the home within 15 minutes of receiving the call and conducted a thorough preliminary investigation, Ruiz stated.

The preliminary investigation apparently did not satisfy the dog’s owner, Richard Bryant. In a Facebook post dated Sept. 30, Bryant shared a graphic picture of his deceased dog (see above). He claimed the dog had been shot while roaming in the backyard and he demanded that the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station “investigate immediately.”

“I followed up with the sheriff department who told me a detective would contact me next week,” Bryant stated in the Facebook post. The post went viral and sparked outrage.

“His post was very misleading because he made it sound like we never even conducted an investigation, when in fact we were there within 15 minutes and those deputies spent two hours going above and beyond, interviewing and checking for possible evidence,” Sylvies said. “And then the detective took the investigation even further; he got a hold of Animal Control and expedited a necropsy that led us to where we are now.”

“Some type of predator got into the yard — apparently they’re close to a dirt field — and that’s what caused the death of the dog,” Sylvies added. “There were clear puncture wounds once the hair was shaved away. There was nothing indicating any gunshot wound.”

Sylvies said Lancaster detectives have now closed their investigation.

“Obviously, there’s [an animal] in that neighborhood that needs to be identified, but that’s going to be more on Animal Control at this point,” Sylvies said. “Our involvement at this point is pretty much over.”

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Filed Under: Crime/ Safety

42 comments for "Sheriff’s officials: Dog bitten, not shot in Lancaster backyard"

  1. So….. did Mr. Bryant promptly call the local news channels to get the mess cleared up on the evening news? oh wait, correcting sensationalist mis-information isn’t news, right?? *smh*

  2. Wow Mr. Bryant! You owe the Sheriff’s Dept. an apology! So lets understand this: you called our local cops, believing your dog had been shot. I’m guessing YOU suggested it was shot, since most people don’t call the cops when their dog is attacked by a coyote. So within 15 minutes a deputy (or more?) comes out, and, according to Captain Nelson and Lt. Sylvies from Lancaster Station, spent more than 2 hours investigating your case. They wrote a report. They looked for evidence. They interviewed your neighbors. They came to a conclusion based on the evidence they saw and YOUR suggestion the dog had been shot. Like others have posted here, gun shot wounds are often misidentified, even by veteran homicide detectives, until an autopsy is performed. So SOMEONE (allegedly) tells you a detective will contact you within a week. What other leads, exactly, did you have for the Sheriff to follow up on? Did you discover something the next day, or after the Sheriff left? What was the new lead that could have led to the (in your mind) attacker? NOTHING! So like someone else posted here, you felt you were entitled to a 24 hour, around the clock investigation! And when you didn’t get it, you went on FB to bash our local cops. But as it turned out, they actually WERE working on your case! Then, when the Sheriff solves your case, and politely tells you that you were full of crap, you don’t even have the gonads to apologize, still trying to shift the blame away from your own ignorance, and onto the cops. At least have the decency to thank the cops for looking into your coyote vs. dog case, while real victims had their cases put aside! Hope you don’t need further service from the cops, if I were them I’d put you at the end of my list!

  3. What about we all settle on the fact…Mylo was not shot.. I have dogs and love all dogs… I detest idiots that turn dogs into killing machines and those who do not understand the complete love of a pet… I too like the family would have taken the peace officer at face value and been very fearful for my family. I’m happy to know that at least Mylo lived 13 long years before his unfortunate demise. I wish the family peace and a high five to all of us who enjoy our freedom of speech rights!

  4. I live on 30th and L6 and there’s always been coyotes roaming at night. There’s been plenty of times we find dead animals on the street. Chickens, cats, dogs, rabbits.

    • I agree with you…I live not to far from Marie Kerr Park and EVERY night I hear the yapping of packs of coyotes…I even witnessed one with one of my chickens in its mouth jumping our 5 foot fence and running off when we first moved to our property…they also will hunt day or night and not that long ago one crossed the road in front of me near the mall. There have also been reports of sightings nearby of big cats and bears sometimes. We haven’t had a lot of rain so I’m sure their food sources are running low so they are coming down out of the surrounding mountains to get their food. Pet owners need to make sure their small dogs and cats are locked up properly at night as well as small livestock.

  6. I (for the first time ever and never again) must apologize to the Sheriffs Dept. I posted the email to them and urged others to copy and paste the story and forward it on to them.
    My bad, but that is ok because otherwise I’m perfect.

  8. Wait, someone was police bashing before the investigation was complete and posted false information about the police? I’m not shocked. I wonder if the family will post an apology on Facebook. Probably not. Then you have ignorant people like Dianne posting stupid things.

    • You are an idiot. It was the sheriff who came to the residence who told the homeowner that the dog had been shot.

    • Uncle Tom, is your comment directed towards me? “Mr. Know it all”? Lol
      No, I don’t need an apology but I think there should be one to Lancaster station. Do you live with Dianne?

      • Not sure how you could figure this was directed at you. I actually agree with your comment above this.

  10. Even though this valley has a lot of tract housing it doesn’t take away from the fact that it is still a very rural area with a lot of wildlife in the surrounding mountains…coyotes, bobcats, mountain lions, bears, etc. etc. I live near the area of Marie Kerr Park and I know for a fact that there are packs of coyotes that come out almost every night and one crossed the road in front of me near the mall not that long ago as well and I have read of reports of some type of big wild cat that was spotted near the freeway in the White Fence Farms area…you can hear the coyotes yapping every night and then the neighborhood dogs start going crazy…they are looking for prey and typically it is the backyard little dogs and the roaming house cats…coyotes are great jumpers and can easily jump a 4-5 foot fence so I would say the pet owners need to be more aware of the wildlife that surrounds us and comes out to prey when hungry.

  11. Tonight we have learned the truth about what happened to our dog Mylo. I do not have reason to doubt the findings based on what was explained to me, but I still have serious questions about how the LASD handled the investigation and the aftermath. First let me explain that if this was an animal attack, and they were so certain right from the start, why was the report taken by the deputies who responded listed as ANIMAL CRUELTY? They too witnessed the remains of my dog and came to the conclusion that he indeed had been shot. When I asked the deputy again if we were sure it was a gun shot he had no doubt and said with absolute certainty that it was a gun shot based on the EXIT WOUND and how the blood had exited the wound. I only have to go on what I am told, and if a deputy confirms it, I have no further reason to doubt it. It was a horrible situation and I do not fault the deputies who responded to my call based on what they had seen. As difficult as it was to fathom, I too felt it was a gun shot. However, as upset as I was about what we believed had happened to Mylo, my frustration and reason for the post was in regards to the the response of a deputy I was put in touch with when I called back to follow up. I was told it would be assigned to an investigator and somebody would contact me NEXT WEEK. If you are told by deputies that your dog has been shot in the very yard your children play in and when your asking for answers and getting brushed aside, your going to get upset. My first priority is to the protection of my family. Regardless what we know now, what we all (LASD included) believed at the time was that it in fact was a gun shot. Why would I not reach out to the community and bring attention to the matter. I believe anybody in hindsight would have done the same. Instead of the department accepting any fault in the matter in which it was handled, they chose to alienate me and my reactions based on THEIR assessment at the scene and are trying to distance themselves from their own misguided conclusions. My apologies are directed to only those who like me were outraged at the idea that Mylo had been victimized, but they will not be directed towards a department who handled this in such a poor manner and then liked the blame on the very person they claimed to have helped. As far accusations of misleading people with my post, it clearly states “When I followed up…”
    Respectfully,
    Rick Bryant

    • Wow Mr. Bryant, It’s terrible to read about what you went through and let me humbly apologize for my earlier insensitive comment. I can’t imagine how I would feel if I lost my dog in such a manner, and he’s only half Mylo’s age. Your story went viral because it struck a chord with many of us who treat our dogs like family. May your little Mylo rest in peace. Hopefully, animal control can follow up on the predator situation. It could still be a very dangerous situation for your family if that thing ever comes around while your children are playing in the back yard. Good luck!

    • I’m sorry about your dog but you handled it like an idiot! The deputy who responded wrote a report based on his limited knowledge of the dogs wounds,that is why it got assigned to a detective who has the time and resources to investigate what happened and had a necropsy performed at no expense to you. The truth is you felt entitled to have a full scale investigation run around the clock because your emotions guided you. You do owe them an apology. They solved your case and now you can move on. doesnt sound like you were brushed aside since they even did an autopsy on your dog

      • So even though the sheriff told him that it was definitely a gunshot wound and even told the owner of the dog why he recognized it as a gunshot wound the dog owner shouldn’t have believed him? Ya, why would an average citizen believe a law enforcement official?

        You, tired of whining, are the idiot and should stop listening to those voices in your head.

        • Seriously! Your an idiot! gunshot wounds are mistake all the time by law enforcement to doctors until they shave the hair and get inside the wound to look. You think the deputy broke out his CSI kit and ran a stick thru the wound !!! He’s a deputy and based on his time on the job May not of seen very many of them. He may of formed the opinion based on his experience that he believed it was a gunshot wound but that is why they did a necropsy because he isn’t an expert.

          • So you think that anyone who accepts the word of a sheriff’s deputy and doesn’t interview him or her about length of time on the force is an idiot? Is that supposed to be routine procedure when a deputy arrives at your house? Amazingly, I’ve never heard of that procedure. Or perhaps everyone should “know” as you do that “gunshot wounds are mistake all the time by law enforcement”? Is that a fact or just a random thought you pulled out of your head and posted as fact to support your venomous attack on someone who has lost a loved one? Do you really have the nerve to call that person a whiner? You get an F in the human being department. And, by the way, you also get a D- in the English department.

      • Sad turn of events all around. But I have to agree with Rick in that the sheriffs department handled it poorly. Lord knows the difficulty that the deputies have to deal with in regard to the current LA element problem we are all having to deal with that which is so prevalent in the AV these days! It takes a special person to have to police our current dilemma. However, that being said, there is no excuse to blow off this with a “we’ll get with you sometime next week” attitude! I have been in the same situation and the uncaring cavalier attitude from dispatch for the law abiding citizens is alarming.

    • Rick you have nothing to apologize for, I saw the uncensored picture when it was shared on facebook, and I also thought it looked like a gunshot wound. Plus your wife said she heard a gunshot early that morning. I would’ve assumed that if the animal was caught by a predator it would’ve looked more like it had been eaten, but it did not appear that way to me at all. I’m very sorry for your loss. Rest in Peace Mylo

  12. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE DOG WEBSITE? I WANTED TO SEE THE GORY DETAILS OF THE WOUNDS BUT THE PAGE HAS BEEN TAKEN DOWN! :-(

  13. I few years ago a neighbor told me of a group of guys that were attempting to drop their fighting dog into his yard, he had a couple of German Shepherds He caught them at it and chased them off. He thought they might be trying to test their dog.

    • I agree with you Lucy. I have heard of guys doing the same. A large breed dog can pick up a little dog by the back of its neck and crush the bones and shake the dog for a minute to kill the dog. Those same dogs get turned loose in the middle of the night to roam neighborhoods and can go over 4 foot fences easily.
      If it had been a coyote, it would have dragged the dog away or it would have been torn apart. A coyote attack is not quiet or quick.

      • Fighting dogs do not just swoop in, crush a victims neck and then just leave. They tear apart their victims until they are TOLD to stop or pulled away. I do not believe that this unfortunate dog was attacked by a “fighting dog” that was secretly dropped into their backyard.

        • Sure they do, ThatOneChick. Sometimes they leave the dead animal neatly at the sidewalk for the owner or anyone who drives down the street to see.

  14. Wow, that sure was a misunderstanding alright! Thank You to the Sheriff’s Department for doing a job well done.

  15. LoL oh some one made a misleading post on Facebook and the sheriffs start freaking out… Dang I wish people could do this when the cops make misleading reports and make things out to be something there not.That suks about the dog though. Hopefully everything gets resolved.

      • You don’t see the cops saying sorry when they mess up do you nope…sorry I’ve had bad encounters with cops and its bull(@#$ what they get away with doing to some people but then again there are good ones..sorry if my comments are getting old so is this av !!

  16. I want to see the report before I believe that this dog was not shot
    The cops can tell the reporters what they want and our so called investigating reports don’t ask for proof they just write what they are told just a bunch of sheep I say always question authority Because they are no better then you

    • LOL!!! You think it’s a cover up?! For what reason? Why don’t you call animal control and get us that autopsy report then? You can bust this case wide open and heads will roll… LMAO!!!

    • Dianne, why don’t you hire your own private investigator. Get that homicide hunter that’s on TV. I think his name is Joe Kenda. Do your own investigation. Maybe they will even televise it. There is a proverb that comes to mind. “Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open your mouth and confirm it”.

    • Seriously OK the dog wasn’t bit by a bear or anything or maby Godzilla jumped there fence and attacked the dog…