Police have raided the creepy woodland ranch of a man who kept wild wolf-dog hybrids after the pack killed a neighbor’s pet and terrorized the area.
Officers with Shasta County Sheriff’s Department raided the property in Shingletown last week, recovering three dogs and seven puppies, with three still on the loose.
The ‘feral’ animals – who are owned by David Celis – attacked and killed a medium sized pet dog on March 26, and struck again last week, local police said.
Speaking to KRCR, Celis said that the pet his dogs had attacked and killed was ‘no angel’, as he blasted the officers who raided his home.
He told the outlet: ‘That dog they supposedly killed, he was no angel. The owner came over a couple times to get him.
‘I said you know what’s gonna happen if your dog keeps coming over here and harassing these guys. They’re gonna jump the fence and go get him.’
Officers with Shasta County Sheriff’s Department raided the property in Shingletown last week, recovering three dogs and seven puppies, with three still on the loose
The ‘feral’ animals, who are owned by David Celis, seen here,attacked and killed a medium sized pet dog on March 26
The ‘feral’ animals attacked and killed three-year-old Chief on March 26, and struck again last week, local police said
Celis added: ‘I’m not negligent I didn’t purposely let them out of the yard.’
Celis also hit back at the officers, saying: ‘It’s inhumane man, and you know, they wouldn’t let me do nothing.
‘They made me stand there for five hours the first day and if you move you’re gonna get hand cuffed.’
Celis claims he does all he can to keep his animals contained inside his property, but his dogs still manage to find a way to escape.
He added: ‘It’s when I leave. If I go to Redding, or go do my chores and pay bills in Redding, that’s when they get out. When I’m not there.’
The dog in question was three-year-old Australian-Pyrenees mix Chief, who was mauled to death by five of the dogs.
The sheriff’s office had secured warrants to enter the property after receiving ‘reports of how these animals were behaving to members of the public’.
All of the dogs recovered were transported to Haven Humane Society in Anderson, where they will be kept until a hearing date.
Celis claims he does all he can to keep his animals contained inside his property, but his dogs still manage to find a way to escape. One of the animals is seen here being captured
The sheriff’s office had secured warrants to enter the property after receiving ‘reports of how these animals were behaving to members of the public’
The dogs are seen mauling the first of two domesticated canines to fall victim to the crisis – an attack that occurred right in the family’s driveway
Officers have already taken one of the dogs into custody , after Celis surrendered it to authorities
In a statement, the office said: ‘The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office is continuing their efforts to address a pack of dogs that are roaming the Lake McCumber area.
‘As this investigation progressed, further information allowed the Sheriff’s Office to secure warrants to seize the dogs from the owner.
‘On Wednesday, April 10, and Thursday, April 11, deputies and Animal Regulation Officers served the warrants at a residence on Shenandoah Drive, Shingletown.
‘At this point, 3 adult dogs and 7 puppies have been successfully captured. While serving these warrants staff were unable to successfully capture 3 additional adult dogs that escaped the property.
‘The captured dogs have been taken to Haven Humane where they will remain pending a hearing. Efforts to capture the remaining three dogs will continue.’
In an emotional interview, Chief’s owner Sharina Clark lamented her loss, previously told KRCR-7, ‘For the first week, we were pretty much here grieving, and then had to bury our dog. And after we buried him I started looking into what was happening.’
‘I don’t want anyone to get hurt and this is a community of elderly people,’ owner Sharina Clark said, asking her face not be shown out of fear the owner of the mutts might exact revenge
His owner buried Chief in the family backyard, picking the spot because it was his favorite spot to nap
Russel McCoy – a resident who lives two doors down from the sometimes fenced in pack – added his yard has also been imposed on by the pack
This attentiveness led her to her neighbor and the conclusion that the pack is not feral, but just vicious and uncontrolled.
Clark added: ‘I don’t want anyone to get hurt and this is a community of elderly people.’
She also shared their security camera footage showing the pack coming up their doorstep following the fatal attack, trying to get her other dog who was still inside.
She went on to add: ‘We’re the youngest family here. The very next day, [the pack] came back, and my daughter was outside 10 minutes before.’
Russel McCoy added his yard has also been imposed on by the pack, which he said are let loose ‘Every time [the owner] leaves the house.
‘Generally he leaves every day somewhere between 10 and 11 o’clock in the morning. And within minutes after he’s gone, there’s at least two out, if not four or five.’
Shingletown, meanwhile, is roughly a 175-mile drive north from Sacramento. Noted for its timber industry, it was once a camp for workers who cut roofing slats to supply miners during the Gold Rush era.
As for the Clarks, they have since buried Chief in the family backyard, picking a certain patch was his favorite spot to nap. The other dog mentioned by police, who also died, has not been identified.
