WARNING: This article contains details that some people may find disturbing.
A desperate dog owner has expressed his disgust after discovering bullet holes in his walls and blood on his carpets after police shot dead his beloved pets. Ashley Taylor, 35, handed over the keys to his property to officers who arrested arrested him on July 30 of this year on suspicion of burglary and other crimes.
Before going to the police station, he left his dogs behind – Staffordshire Bull Terrier Lotus and American Bulldog Prince – in the kitchen of his Sheffield home. However, when he returned the next day, he was confronted with a scene of shell casings, blood and bullet holes, along with only one of his dog's collars on the landing.
South Yorkshire Police later stated that the dogs were considered an “unregistered XL Bully and a pit bull type,” were considered “aggressive,” and therefore were “humanely” destroyed. The loss of his two dogs, whom Ashley described as “his children,” left him devastated.
He said: “I'm heartbroken, to be honest. I had just come home from the police station and I couldn't stay there. I got changed and walked straight out. I just don't understand why they did that. It's just awful. They weren't just dogs, they were like children, they were like my babies, and they just took them, like that.”
Ryan Smith, 43, a neighbour in the Woodhouse area of Sheffield, told how dozens of officers responded to the address at around 11.30pm on July 30. But police told him a search was not possible because there were dogs inside.
Ryan said: “I came out of my house and there were six or seven police cars on the street, and they told me they had to search the house but they couldn't go in because of the dogs. I said I would go in and get them. I pet those dogs every day, I know them, they know me, they play with my kids. The officer said 'no no no, it's a life-threatening situation.'
Later, around 3 a.m., Ryan saw “officers with two large dog cages and a group of armed officers in full gear” approach the scene. He continued, “I heard 12 shots… I don't think that's right at all. Those dogs would still be alive if they would have let me go in there and get them.”
The aftermath photos showed extensive damage, suggesting that one dog, Lotus, was shot in the kitchen, while the second dog, Prince, was chased through the house as shots were fired on the stairs. Ashley described the bloody chaos in his home: “There was broken glass in my kitchen. There was blood all over my stairs and bullet holes in the walls.
“It looks like they came down the stairs and lit the fire, because my bathroom [at the top of the stairs] is full of holes. Prince's collar was left on the stairs. I just don't understand why they did this. I can just imagine them killing Lotus in the kitchen and chasing Prince through the house and shooting him.”
Ashley has expressed his frustration after he organised a protest in Sheffield following an incident in which his dogs, Lotus and Prince, were killed. Their bodies have still not been returned and he has still not received keys to his property.
A South Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “We were called to Tithe Barn Lane in the Woodhouse area of Sheffield at 4.50pm on Tuesday, July 30 following reports of a disturbance.
Officers were sent to the scene and arrested a man on suspicion of burglary, attempted burglary and possession of class A drugs. He was subsequently handed over to Derbyshire Police.
“Two dogs present on the property, believed to be an unregistered XL Bully and a pit bull, were exhibiting aggressive behavior. Gun owners were dispatched to the property due to the increased risk of injury due to the level of aggression shown by both dogs.
“Officers were on scene for over four hours working with kennel staff and dog handlers to devise tactics to contain the dogs. The dogs could not be safely contained to allow officers to do their job and the decision was made to humanely kill them on site.
“The dogs will remain on police property while the breed assessments and testing take place. We aim to keep the owner informed.”