COOLBAUGH TOWNSHIP, PA — John Scifo of Coolbaugh Township and his family are looking for closure. His beloved 6-year-old pup Petey was shot and killed nearly two weeks ago on Ryan's Road, just off Route 196 near Tobyhanna.
"I've had dogs for 45 years, and everyone will say their dog is the sweetest, most gentle, kindest dog in the world. Petey truly was. Petey won your heart the moment you saw him, sweet, lick you to death," Scifo said.
Scifo says he was making dinner for his two dogs on August 12. When he called for the dogs to come inside from the backyard, Petey didn't show.
"I went to where he normally sits, and he wasn't there," Scifo said. "So I looked around. I called out, 'Petey, Petey dinner, Petey dinner,' and then I started to look around the backyard. That's where I found him, right by our horseshoe pit."
Scifo says he worked on the Labrador/rat terrier mix for 15 minutes performing CPR, but Petey was gone.
He brought the dog to a vet whose report said Petey died from a gunshot wound.
Scifo then called the Pocono Mountain Regional Police Department and filed a report.
"The person's out there. Who's to say it won't happen again to another animal or even to a person? It's unconscionable, in my opinion, to let something like this go. Animal or not, there's a shooter out there who can do this again," Scifo said.
He says he's taking matters into his own hands, hoping to find the person who did this.
"We have a $5,000 reward out. We have a GoFundMe page now for hiring a private investigator because the police are not doing what they're supposed to be doing," Scifo said.
The department is still investigating.
If you have any information on who killed Petey, contact Pocono Mountain Regional Police at (570) 895-2400 or Petey's owner John Scifo at sepc@scifo.com.
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