A heroic dog who saved the lives of dozens of soldiers in Afghanistan and melted hearts on “Oprah” was accidentally euthanized at an Arizona animal shelter on Monday.
An unidentified employee at the Pinal County Animal Care and Control in Casa Grande, Ariz., was placed on leave after putting the female shepherd mix to sleep by mistake, county officials said.
“When it comes to euthanizing an animal, there are some clear-cut procedures to follow,” Ruth Stalter, the shelter’s director, said in a statement. “Based on my preliminary investigation, our employee did not follow those procedures.”
The dog, Target, was a stray in Afghanistan who befriended soldiers and was hailed as a hero after she chased away a suicide bomber who tried to blow up a military base last February.
The suicide bomber had sneaked onto the base and was headed toward a barracks that housed nearly 50 soldiers when Target and two other dogs attacked him, Target’s owner, Sgt. Terry Young told Arizona’s KOLD-TV.
The bomber eventually detonated himself, killing one of the dogs and severely injuring Target and another dog, Rufus. Five of the soldiers were injured, but Young said in interviews that he and dozens of others would have been killed had the dogs not stopped the bomber.
After they were nursed back to health, Target and Rufus were essentially adopted by the soldiers at the base and “treated like royalty,” Young told The Arizona Republic.
Young brought the 2-year-old pooch home with him to Arizona when his tour was over, and Target and Rufus gained national attention after appearing with Young on “Oprah,” CNN and news programs.
“I just can’t believe that something like this would happen to such a good dog,” Young told the Republic.
Target was brought to the shelter after she slipped out of Young’s backyard over the weekend, the Republic reported.
Heather Murphy, a spokeswoman for the shelter, told the Republic a neighbor found Target on Friday and called the pound. The dog did not have a microchip or tag, Murphy said.
Young said he found out Target was at the shelter late Friday, but did not pick her up because he thought the shelter was closed for the weekend.
The shelter said a worker mistakenly took Target out of her pen on Monday morning and euthanized her, confusing her for another dog that was scheduled to be put down.
Hours later, Young showed up at the pound to pick her up and was told by the director of the shelter that there had been a mistake and his dog had been euthanized.
Young said the loss devastated his three children, ages 14, 7 and 4.
“The 4-year-old is really taking it hard right now,” Young said. “She’s saying we need to get the poison out of her so she can come home. She can’t grasp the idea that she’s gone.”
A message board on Oprah Winfrey‘s website lit up with tributes to Target and reports of her death on CNN and Arizona news websites drew thousands of comments.
“I am heartsick over this,” Stalter’s statement said. “This is unacceptable and no family should be deprived of their companion because procedures were not followed.”
