Kentucky State Police believe a 16-year old shot a man's dog to death near Greenview Bottom in Vicco.

Alger Williams said he lost one of his best friends.

"I turn my dog loose every Sunday morning so he can run around," said Williams.

But this morning, something was not right.

"Everybody calls me Doc, and my neighbor hollered at me and told me somebody had shot my dog," said Williams.

Williams found his 15-year old dog Barney dead in the grass on his property.

"So I came down there, and right there he lays," said Williams.

Kentucky State Police arrived and questioned folks at a nearby home.
After a while, they led a juvenile to their patrol car in handcuffs.

A trail of blood led them to a trailer next door. Williams said last night he heard loud music coming from that trailer.

Police said the dog was shot with a .22 caliber rifle.

"A neighbor's animals can be a nuisance at times, but there are ways to go about it that are more humane," said Chris Sizemore, with Kentucky State Police.

"A right person in their right mind is not going to do something like that," said Williams.

Williams said now he is left with the pain of losing a trusted companion.

"I love my dog," said Williams.

We knocked on the door of the trailer, but nobody answered the door.

State Police say the young man will face felony cruelty to animal charges in the first degree.

The 16-year old was taken to the Breathitt County Juvenile Detention Center. State Police took the rifle used to shoot the dog into custody.