A HEARTBROKEN Traralgon family has been left in a state of shock after their pet dogs were killed after being abducted from their home on Tuesday.
The bodies of King Charles Cavalier Spaniels Brody and Kamille were found in plastic bags on Wednesday by a Traralgon South land owner who was weed spraying the perimeter of his paddock.
The land owner’s partner recognised the dogs from posts made by the pets’ owners on social media.
Owner Lindel Hodgkinson told The Express her family could not imagine who could be capable of such an act.
“I don’t have a large circle of friends and I don’t have enemies. My partner and I, we’re home bodies and we like to be at home and deal with our close friends,” Ms Hodgkinson said.
Ms Hodgkinson was at work when her partner Adam Dorman phoned to tell her two King Charles Cavalier Spaniels had been found dead at a Traralgon South property.
“He went out there to check if it was them and he was going to call me back,” she said.
“Then my mother turned up at my work because she didn’t want to tell me over the phone.
“My partner put them in the car and brought them home.”
An initial autopsy revealed two year-old Kamille had sustained blunt trauma to the head and was likely to have died quickly.
Five year-old Brody’s examination showed he sustained bruising, but the cause of death could not be determined without further invasive assessment; something Ms Hodgkinson thought she was better off not knowing.
“I’m really having trouble with why somebody would do this,” Ms Hodgkinson said.
“My biggest thing was how to explain it to (the kids).
“We just said they got too hurt to be able to be okay. They don’t need to know that people are so evil.”
Brody and Kamille will be cremated and commemorated by having their ashes spread at a yet-to-be-chosen location.
“We recently took them out to the rock pools towards Inverloch. We had a beautiful day out there with my partner and his kids and my sister and my nieces. We’ll maybe scatter them out there, I’m not sure,” Ms Hodgkinson said.
Morwell Senior Constable John Davey said Brody and Kamille’s deaths were under investigation and further tests would reveal more information.
“The dogs have had autopsies, and at this stage they’re unable to figure out if it was deliberate or an accident,” Sen Const Davy said.
Sen Const Davey said police would also look into acts of vandalism along Little Crescent and determine whether they were connected to the dogs’ death.
He urged community members to phone him if they saw or heard anything suspicious that could be linked to the crime.
If you have any information in relation to Brody and Kamille’s death, phone Senior Constable John Davey at Morwell Police Station on 5131 5000 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
