SPRING HILL, Fla. — A Florida woman has been arrested for allegedly shooting her own dogs with a BB gun over 173 times, officials say.
In a Facebook post, Hernando County Sheriff’s Office said on April 19 an animal enforcement officer visited the home of Jamie Lynn Kujawa, 37, after receiving a tip that a woman was possibly shooting her dogs with a BB gun. Witnesses told the officer that he heard a BB gun being fired and followed by dogs yelping. The witness told the officer they heard the BB gun fire about 15 times in a span of 30 to 45 minutes.
The officer with HCSO spoke with Kujawa who told them she didn’t own a BB gun. The officer proceeded to check the dogs and noticed a variety of injuries and scars. Kujawa told them that the dogs were recently in a fight. She was also unable to give the officer proof of vaccination for all of her dogs. The officer gave her a verbal warning, HCSO says, and stated she had 10 days to provide the vaccination proof.
An animal enforcement officer and a deputy returned the next day to further investigate the conditions of the dogs. The deputy and officer noticed that the dogs were limping through a neighbor’s backyard. They went over to Kujawa’s home and asked to see the dogs. The deputy noticed that two of the dogs had new injuries and the dogs were uncomfortable with letting them examine them. The deputy noted that the injuries seemed consistent with dogs fighting. HCSO says Kujawa was given a 10-day warning to have the dogs see the veterinarian. During that time, an animal enforcement officer checked on the dogs regularly.
WTSP says Kujawa did not have her dogs checked by a veterinarian and she allegedly told deputies that it was because she couldn’t afford for the cost. She surrendered two of the dogs to the Hernando County Animals Services who sent the dogs straight to the veterinarian.
One of the dogs, according to HCSO, had about 61 BBs and 19 lead pellets in their legs, stomach and head. The second had 71 BBs and 22 lead pellets in the same areas. Together about 173 “projectiles” were found in both dogs.
Deputies arrested Kujawa on multiple counts of aggravated animal cruelty on Tuesday. HCSO says she allegedly admitted that she had been shooting the dogs during a two-month period.
WTSP says deputies removed other animals from her home including a third dog, three cats, a bird and a ferret. The investigation into their conditions is ongoing.
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