DETROIT – A Detroit dog shelter was vandalized overnight leaving the nonprofit with thousands of dollars in damages.
Detroit’s first no-kill shelter, Detroit Dog Rescue, has been around for over a decade. Executive Director Kristina Renaldi walked Local 4 through all the damage left behind at the shelter located on Harper Avenue around 4 a.m. Wednesday morning.
“All electricity to the building was cut,” Renaldi explained.
Thankfully all the dogs are just fine. But many of the supplies used to help them have been thrown around and destroyed. The amount of damage - is now in the thousands.
“We have a lot to fix. Roll down doors that are very expensive that will need to be replaced,” Renaldi explains.
Local 4′s cameras were there as police started their investigation. At first, the belief was that the vandals were looking for vet medicine, needles and syringes.
“But what we found is they actually brought leashes with them. These are not our leashes. These are leashes still in the package. They stopped. They bought leashes somewhere and planned to take some of our dogs,” Renaldi added.
Luckily, the intruders weren’t able to carry out their mission.
“Really what they probably thought is that they were walking into a bunch of Yorkies and Poodles and found out that there were a good amount of hundred-pound dogs in here that weren’t able to steal them,” Kristina explained.
However many dogs are worked up and traumatized having to be here during all the commotion in the middle of the night.
“I think that’s the saddest part - just a stressful morning for all of our dogs,” said Renaldi.
Of course, this is an unexpected mishap. So, the organization is accepting donations. There’s also a $5,000 reward for any info that leads to an arrest.
Those hoping to also donate to the shelter can click here.
Related: Power cut, windows smashed, fencing torn apart overnight at Detroit Dog Rescue building