Dog Owners Shocked, Saddened By Shootings

RAPPAHANNOCK, Va. - Tammy Lewis thought it was strange when her dog, Jeezy, went missing Feb. 7.

The 11-month-old puppy, a Labrador-Rottweiler mix, usually did not wander far from her home on Antique Lane in Sperryville. He mostly remained around the house, playing with his older brother, Akon, and Lewis's three daughters.

"Most of the time they stayed in the yard, they really didn't go anywhere," Lewis said. "But one day they were gone."

On Feb. 8, the family went looking for the lost dog. They trudged through the woods as far as a half-mile from home, but found no sign of him.

On Feb. 13, Lewis's neighbor, Thaniel Dodson, told her why. Her dog was dead. And so was his bluetick coonhound, Bulger.

The two dogs had been caught in leg-hold traps on the property of Ray Ludwig, who later shot them, thinking they were strays. Ludwig lives on Oventop Lane on property adjacent to Dodson's.

Dodson's dog went missing on Feb. 12. He set out from his home on Atkins Lane the next day and found both of the dogs around 12:30 p.m. He saw them in a ravine, each dead from a shotgun wound.

Dodson had already found Ludwig's traps on Feb. 8. He said a neighbor called him around 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 7 – the day Lewis's dog went missing – to tell Dodson about some gunshots he heard nearby. According to Dodson, the neighbor heard a gunshot, the sound of a dog yelping, another gunshot and then silence.

"They said they heard a dog scream and holler, and then a second shot go off," he said. "It just made me sick."

Dodson set out to see if he could find the dog and any evidence of dogs he has lost in past years. He said he found the traps, one of which had a dead opossum in it. The scent may have attracted the dogs, he said.

Dodson said Ludwig called him a couple years ago to say he had set traps to catch coyotes.

"I explained to him, 'If you catch my dog, release it.' Well, that was never done," Dodson said. "When you catch something in a trap, that's bad enough, but you can release them."

Dodson went home to gain his composure and called the Rappahannock County Sheriff's Office. Deputy Robbie Finchum went to investigate and charged Ludwig with two counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty.

Ludwig cooperated with Finchum and handed over the gun that he used to kill the dogs. On Feb. 19 in Rappahannock County General District Court, Ludwig waived his right to an attorney and pleaded guilty to both charges.

Ludwig apologized and told the court he had made a big mistake.

"I got the feeling he was remorseful for what he did. [But] it was not a legal excuse," said Commonwealth's Attorney Peter Luke, the prosecutor in the case. "And he cooperated with police; there was not any effort to hide anything."

Ludwig chose not to answer questions from the Rappahannock News for this article. Instead, he said he would send a letter to the newspaper to explain his side of the story. As of Wednesday afternoon, no letter had been received.

What's legal?

Ludwig had set leg-hold traps on his property in an attempt to catch coyotes. The traps look like a metal mouth that snaps closed when something presses the trigger. He baited the traps with chicken.

It is legal in Rappahannock County for a person to set animal traps on his or her own property.

"He was not doing anything illegal in trapping these coyotes," Luke said. "I don't personally care for it, but it's not illegal."

When the dogs got into the traps and Ludwig found them, he thought they were wild and felt it was necessary to put them out of their misery, according to Luke.

Neither dog was wearing a collar in the photos Finchum took for the sheriff's office. Lewis said her dog was not wearing a tag, but Dodson said his dog did have a collar and a tag before it went missing.

Luke said Ludwig told the court he has had long-standing problems with dogs coming onto his property and bothering his guests and his grandchildren.

By law, a person is allowed to shoot a dog – even if it is a stray – on his property only if the dog is chasing or attacking farm animals, companion animals or a person. Stray or problem dogs are supposed to be reported to the county's animal warden.

There is also no leash law in Rappahannock County, but Luke said that just means dog owners cannot get in trouble for letting dogs roam. Dogs still have to wear a tag.

"That doesn't mean dogs can't get in trouble roaming," Luke said, adding that the county does hear complaints about dogs chasing pets and getting into trash. "Responsible owners of dogs need to keep in mind that their dogs can get themselves in trouble on other people's property."

Judge Charles B. Foley heard Ludwig's case on Feb. 19. He also listened to testimony from Finchum and Dodson. Lewis was not present in court.

Foley did not decide on Feb. 19 whether Ludwig will receive jail sentence, a fine or both for the crimes. The decision will likely be made when Ludwig is due back in court on April 1.

Each misdemeanor animal cruelty charge carries a potential penalty of up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine. Combined, Ludwig is facing up to two years in jail and $5,000 in fines for his two offenses.

"The judge kind of left it open," Luke said. "He said he did not feel he was going to impose a jail sentence, but he left it open as to what he is going to do. I think he wants to hear from this other dog owner."

Luke said he thinks the dog owners will, at a minimum, receive restitution for the cost of their pets.

Luke said that an act like Ludwig's could be a felony charge only if he had a prior conviction for animal cruelty. He said Ludwig did not have any prior criminal record that he was able to find.

"I feel bad for the dogs and the owners," Luke said. "They'll get restitution, but they won't get their dogs back."

Owners' plans

For Lewis, restitution is not enough. What's worse, she said, is that Jeezy belonged to her 8-year-old daughter, Alysia.

"He trapped my dog, but he should have just let him go, rather than shooting him twice," Lewis said.

"No amount of money is enough. I looked for that dog a week in the woods," she said. "I really do want an apology for my daughter, at least."

Lewis said she is more protective of her other dog, Akon, now. She keeps him in the house most of the time.

"It seems like he's grieving," she said. "He whines, stares into the woods, he's not eating much. It's sad to watch – it's like he's waiting for [Jeezy] to come back."

Bulger, who was also just 11 months old, is the fourth dog Dodson has lost in the past four years. The other three have not been recovered.

"And I'm not the only one that's missing dogs in this area," he said.

Dodson said he drove 100 miles to Baker, W.Va., last July to buy Bulger, who was a purebred hunting dog. He was also a replacement for another of Dodson's dogs that went missing June 14 of last year.

"I love my dogs. I spent a lot of money, a lot of time," Dodson said. "When you have a dog that you like, they're not only a pet, but a friend and a companion.

"A good hunting dog is hard to find," Dodson continued. "A dog like that is priceless. It's hard to replace a dog like that."

But Dodson did say he was very appreciative of Finchum's response to the incidents.

"I feel like Deputy Finchum went out of his way to do what he did," Dodson said. "He wasn't concerned about his uniform, he walked this mountain. He was concerned about people's animals."

E-mail the reporter at kallen@timespapers.com.

Copyright 2008 Rappahannock News. All rights reserved.