A “sick” quad biker killed a beloved dog pup with a crossbow before riding off.
The unidentified bowman’s arrow is believed to have gone “in one side and out the other” of Irish wolfhound Wilma while she out playing on Saturday afternoon.
She was taken to a vet for emergency treatment, but did not survive.
The family pet had been at a creek in the Darwin River area in Australia’s Northern Territory when the attacker struck.
A post on the Northern Territory Lost and Found Facebook page revealed the shot “went straight through her back and internal organs.”
Wilma’s owner, Sam Rose, is said to be devastated by her death.
His daughter said: “My dad is heartbroken, I have never seen him cry in my life.”
The pet was the only one of her litter to survive the deadly canine parvovirus – highly contagious gastrointestinal disease – when she was born.
Ms Rose added: “My dad nursed her back to health day and night, she was his pride and joy.”
“Pure, heartless cruelty to a sweet pup who was not even a year old.”
The facebook post attracted a swathe of comments condemning the attack.
One woman wrote: “I’m so sorry people are so cruel. Sending much love to your dad and family.”
Another added: “I hope they are dobbed in and are punished accordingly. So sorry for your loss.”
Last month, the Star reported the tale of Angel, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, who was dragged 50metres along the road by a van in Herne Hill, south London. The dog suffered a head injury and needed surgery to remove an eye
The nine-year-old dog, who was on a lead, was dragged about 50metres along the road in Herne Hill, south London.
She miraculously survived but was left badly injured from the collision at 11.15pm on New Year’s Eve last year.