Justice For Dory: Real or Hoax?

A pit bull named Dory was allegedly shot in the mouth by a drunken neighbor in Biloxi, Mississippi in September 2013. The story outraged readers and immediately amassed tens of thousands of shares online, yet no local news agencies reported it. Did this shooting really happen, or is this just an elaborate internet hoax?

Background

Details of the incident are lacking, as is available evidence. Below we present all of the information we were able to obtain.

The story of Dory’s shooting began with a post on September 11, 2013, which read (and has since been removed):

Share this for Dory!

Dory was shot in the moth with a 380 containing hollow point bullets.

Dory’s only crime… Being a pit bull.

Our neighbor walked into my yard… Called my dog to over to them and put his gun in her mouth and fired 3 time.

Our teenage teenager was at home at witnessed this terrible act. When he ran out to confront said neighbor and to see what had happened the neighbors only response was “what did you see”. The man was very drunk and made it obvious that he was angry and into wanting to fight.

When the police arrived they questioned the neighbor who stated that his reason for his horrible act was because Dory is a pit bull and made is wife scared.

Now, Dory is a 9 yr old dog who is registered as a K9 good citizen as well as being a certified as a therapy dog and visits with senior citizens and wounded veterans while in the hospital. This means that she has been tested and has proven herself to be controllable and adjust easy to all situations.

When taken to the vet dory was found to have her jaw broken in two places, several teeth missing, 7 broken in half including to canines in addition to having powder burns down her throat and in her mouth.

The vet is set to testify that the only way this dog could have received these burns in her mouth and throat is to have the gun inserted into her mouth and the trigger pulled.

The vet remove two pieces of Dory’s jaw, 7 teeth, wired additional pieces of her jaw bone and portions of her gums and roof of her mouth that were torn and damaged to much to heal. There are attached pictures of the bullets that have been removed there is twice that much there still.

The reason I am asking for your help here is the officer who came out said he was not even going to file a report. He said this is a civil matter, not criminal. I have contacted my friend at the ASPCA of Mississippi and have an investigator looking into animal cruelty charges. I have also contacted the local news who stated IF I CAN GET ENOUGH People involved in Dory’s story they would cover the story. This is why I am asking u to share.

Please if you have a dog who is part of your family share this. She is my friend and like your pet a member of our family. Please help bring this man to justice or at least plaster is horrible act all over for the world to see, he needs to be ashamed of his act.

Attached are pictures of our sweet girl also the bullets that were removed from her face.

Photos

5 Photos were included with the original post. Three of them showed Dory apparently before the shooting. One showed a closeup of the dog’s mouth, which shows some blood and chipped teeth. The other photo claims to show the bullets removed from Dory’s mouth.

Page Removed

The original post included a link to a Facebook page which has since been removed. Some claim that this is evidence that the story is being suppressed, while others have claimed that Dory’s owner mistakenly set up a personal profile instead of a Facebook page. That page, “justicefordory” appears to have been replaced by “Dorys Justice,” which is still active.

Change.org Petition

A petition was established on Change.org, entitled, “Harrison County, Biloxi Mississippi police`: Take action against Dory’s attacker.” It reached 3000 signatures and simply reads, “Take action against Dory’s attacker.” Police have not issued any response to this petition.

Donation Site

A website collecting donations for Dory’s medical bills was established. As of this writing, it had raised over $500 toward a goal of $2300. The project describes the incident in the following manner: “Dory, a 9 year old pit was shot 3 times in the mouth by a neighbor simply because his wife does not like pitbulls. Police wont help and vet bills are adding up!” Some commenters online have referred to this donation drive as a “scam” but have not presented evidence.

WLOX

Many outraged readers have asked South Mississippi’s WLOX to report Dory’s story – but the news station has not responded to these requests. We have reached out to WLOX for clarification why they have not picked up the story or responded to these Facebook comments, and we’ll post their response if and when they answer.

Harrison County Sheriff’s Office

In the extensive discussion of this incident, the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office has been mentioned as having knowledge of – or denying knowledge of – the shooting. We attempted to get clarification from the Sheriff’s Office on this incident, and whether or not they have knowledge of the shooting or not, but were unable to gather any new information.

Owner’s Sudden Absence

Around four days after the original post, Dory’s owner stopped posting online. According to the Dory’s Justice Faceboook page, this is because the owner’s family is in the process of moving. Skeptics have suggested that this sudden disappearance just as the story went viral could be signs that something is amiss. We messaged the dog’s owner, but did not receive a response.

Comparison to Corona the Dog

In August 2012, we reported on a similar incident regarding a dog named Corona which had also been shot in the mouth. That story had multiple photos, x-rays, video, and statements from the vet which tended to the dog. There were no doubts surrounding Corona’s shooting. Until Dory’s story is updated with the same amount of evidence as seen in the Corona case, it will be impossible to fend off claims that it is a hoax.

Evidence

The available evidence for Dory’s shooting includes a written narrative, a single photo of the dog’s mouth, and a photo of the bullets. This is insufficient to stave off doubts for the following reasons:

• The owner has gone silent, and is unavailable for comment.
• Police took no action in an apparent shooting, and released no statement.
• Evidence from the veterinarian visit has not been offered

Additional Evidence

A couple of readers sent us additional evidence which they felt would support the claim that Dory’s attack was real. The two images include a citation and a business card with a case number written on it.

Unfortunately, neither of these documents include a date or any specific information regarding the alleged events. The inclusion of a case number may prove useful in our continued research of the incident. Only a few words can be read in the report underneath the business card in the photo above, such as “mandibular defect,” and the citation in the top photo states it is a “leash law violation.”

Without irrefutable evidence that specifically corroborates the details of the owner’s narrative, doubts will continue to surround the shooting of Dory. Did it happen? Only time – and some additional evidence – can answer that question.

If you have additional information, please let us know in the comments below. We will update this page with information as it arrives.