HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. – A family pet was shot and killed by a Hillsborough County deputy Sunday, News Channel 8 confirmed.

An Apollo Beach woman told us two unknown deputies responded to an abandoned home in her neighborhood while she was in her back yard with her dogs and her children.

The woman said her Australian shepherd started barking at the deputies through a fence. When the dog, who was 30 pounds, jumped the fence, she said one of the deputies shot the dog several times as it was in mid-air.

When the woman brought her dying dog back into her home, she said one of the deputies asked her something along the lines of “What are you gonna do with him, take him to the vet now?”

The dog died at the scene, according to the woman.

“How can somebody see something that quick, to shoot so fast. I mean, he didn’t even make it over the fence. There’s blood all the way down my fence and where he laid. And I just think that was excessive coming toward them,” Toni Waltz said.

The sheriff’s office confirmed a dog was shot by one of their deputies, but they have not verified the woman’s claims and did not explain the circumstances that led to the dog’s death. They said they’re investigating the incident, but would not share more details.

Source: http://wfla.com