The Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office has made one arrest and said charges were pending against a second person in connection with the severe beating of a 13-pound dog who was left for dead in August.
Ranger, a cockapoo, was left fighting for his life after being attacked during a home burglary in Riverton. The dog suffered a fractured skull but eventually recovered enough that he could go home from the vet clinic.
Through "good dogged police work," investigators were able to come up with a couple of names of juveniles known to frequent the area, said Salt Lake County Sheriff's Lt. Paul Jaroscak. That work paid off when a 17-year-old boy was arrested Saturday and booked into juvenile detention for investigation of animal cruelty, aggravated burglary, theft and stealing a firearm.
The teen was booked for investigation of felony animal cruelty. If prosecutors agree with deputies' original assessment and decide to charge him with a felony, it would be the first test of the state's new animal cruelty law.
Ranger, who belongs to Vicky Kunz and her family, was at home the weekend of Aug. 16 while the family was out of town. Detectives believe two juveniles broke into the Kunz house, one of them armed with a weapon, Jaroscak said.
Neighbors noticed the next day that the family's garage door was open. When the Kunz family arrived home, they found Ranger lying in a pool of blood. The family said Ranger is very protective of the home and believes he may have nipped at the ankles of the intruders. But they can't fathom someone feeling so threatened by a 13-pound dog that they'd resort to such violence.
Animal rights groups offered a $7,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.
While Ranger underwent treatment for his injuries, the Humane Society of Utah worked to raise money to pay for his medical bills, said executive director Gene Baierschmidt. He said he's glad to hear police were able to sniff out the suspects responsible for this crime.
"It was a cruel act, and it inflicted extreme physical pain," Baierschmidt said. "I'm glad they were able to apprehend them, and, hopefully, they will get the counseling they need."
Once the two teens came onto the sheriff's radar, Jaroscak said, it took some time to compare forensic evidence and conduct interviews with the boys and their parents. Charges against the second boy, also 17, were pending Monday, Jaroscak said.
Kunz said her family found out last Friday that the teen was going to surrender.
"We feel good, really good. It's given us a sense of closure. It's kind of been a long ordeal," she said. "My kids are a little more comfortable in their own home again. Mostly we're just glad (the juveniles) are not going to be able to do that in our neighborhood again for awhile."
Kunz said she didn't know the suspects, but she would be curious to find out why they attacked her dog like they did.
As for Ranger, Kunz said he is "doing amazingly well."
"He's up walking around and running and interacting with the kids, but he definitely has a loss of coordination," she said.
"He's a very lucky dog to say the least," Baierschmidt said.
Contributing: Jens Dana
E-mail: preavy@desnews.com