Dog mistaken for wolf shot dead in Sierra County; sheriff’s office investigating

Posted on by
Reply

By Cecilio Padilla

Updated on: March 19, 2025 / 1:25 PM PDT / CBS Sacramento

SIERRA COUNTY – An investigation is underway in the Northern California high country after a dog apparently mistaken for a wolf was shot and killed.

The Sierra County Sheriff’s Office posted earlier this week that a dog owner was looking for their lost pet, named Benson, who had run off from the Sierra Brooks neighborhood. Benson was less than a year old and friendly, the owners reported.

Deputies say, Tuesday morning, they also got reports of a possible wolf sighting in the Sierra Brooks area. Further investigation revealed that the sighting was actually that of a dog that had escaped its yard.

https://www.facebook.com/v4.0/plugins/post.php?app_id=&channel=https%3A%2F%2Fstaticxx.facebook.com%2Fx%2Fconnect%2Fxd_arbiter%2F%3Fversion%3D46%23cb%3Dfbe466b88a7e61c2a%26domain%3Dwww.cbsnews.com%26is_canvas%3Dfalse%26origin%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.cbsnews.com%252Ffa1ea5cf75c44c2b0%26relation%3Dparent.parent&container_width=980&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fsierracosheriff%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0L5wP9o8asLkxcapDiLJW934J5Wnu4ktxxNeyHjy3oKrLyU7h8d3EBCxwYvWCeER8l&locale=en_US&sdk=joey&width=552

Notably, deputies say the dog mistaken for a wolf had an orange collar – unlike the kind of GPS collars some of the gray wolves have that are being tracked in eastern Sierra County.

Later on Tuesday, the sheriff’s office revealed that the dog that had been mistaken for a wolf was found dead. It had apparently been shot, deputies say.

The sheriff’s office says they are continuing to investigate the dog’s death and are interviewing people. The person who originally posted about the dog is cooperating with the investigation, deputies say, and isn’t considered a suspect. 

00:21

02:00

See More

https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.690.0_en.html#fid=goog_56232013
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.690.0_en.html#fid=goog_56232014
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.690.0_en.html#fid=goog_56232015

Sierra Brooks is a Sierra County community about 40 miles north of Truckee. 

Gray wolves are listed as an endangered species in California, meaning taking an animal is prohibited anywhere in the state.

APHIS Further Postpones Effective Date for Horse Protection Act Final Rule

Posted on by
Reply
03/20/2025
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is further postponing the effective date of the Horse Protection Act final rule to February 1, 2026.  APHIS is also taking public comment on the delay.On January 24, 2025, APHIS announced it was postponing the effective date of the rule for 60 days from February 1, 2025, to April 2, 2025, with the exception of the section authorizing the training of horse inspectors, which previously went into effect on June 7, 2024.  APHIS will further postpone the effective date for the rule, other than the training section, to February 1, 2026. Additionally, APHIS is requesting public comments on whether the Agency should further extend the length of this postponement and is also soliciting additional information to help inform a decision on the appropriate length of the postponement.The docket is currently on public inspection and will be available for comment at the following address beginning on March 21:  https://www.regulations.gov/docket/APHIS-2022-0004. The comment period will close on May 20, 2025.On March 14, 2025, APHIS shared an information update to stakeholders for the upcoming horse show season in light of a recent court decision impacting the new rule.The HPA is a Federal law that prohibits sored horses from participating in shows, exhibitions, sales or auctions. The HPA also prohibits the transportation of sored horses to or from any of these events.