Pet dog shot dead in hotel grounds in 'pest control incident'

The 45-year-old builder had let Wilma and his other dog, Buffy, out of his home in Shedfield, near Winchester, Hants.

He said: I knew instantly what it was and I shouted out 'Wilma, Wilma' but only Buffy came back. All I could hear was six yelps."

He eventually found Wilmas lifeless body with a gunshot wound and covered in blood.

"It was awful, he said. How could you shoot a dog? I want to speak to the person who did it and just ask 'why'?

"How could you mistake it for something else? She was just a whippet and a really nice dog that was like a member of the family."

A Hampshire Constabulary spokesman said officers had spoken to a man in connection with the incident but made no arrests.

A hotel spokesman said: "Meon Valley, a Marriott Hotel and Country Club, is sad to confirm that an incident involving a pest controller and a local pet dog was reported to the police during the night.

"A full police investigation is under way and we have suspended all pest control at our UK hotels until this is complete.

"We are deeply sorry for the distress this unprecedented incident has caused the dog's owners and we will do all we can to assist the police investigations."

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Pet dog shot dead in hotel grounds in 'pest control incident'