Pennsylvania State troopers respond to a report of dog killings at the eastern boat ramp in Eaton Reservoir, just west of the state border. The three dogs, which had been shot and left are believed to have been used in a dog fighting operation.

Pennsylvania State Police are investigating the discovery of three deceased dogs which were found in the water of the Howard Eaton Reservoir near North East last week.

Police said the dogs had been shot multiple times while they were in the water. All three dogs were pit bulls and had numerous scars, which led police to believe they were being trained as fighting dogs.

Police were called about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday to the eastern boat ramp, which is accessed from State Line Road. The ramp is about quarter-mile west of the New York-Pennsylvania border.

Police were called by a New York couple who were at Eaton Reservoir walking their dogs. The couple, who asked not to be identified, said they were hailed by a man in a kayak who told them about the dogs and asked them to contact authorities.

“We were absolutely appalled,” said the man who contacted the police. “Both my wife and I broke into tears when we saw the dogs. We cannot believe that anyone could do such a thing.”

Three Pennsylvania State police troopers responded to the call. After completing an initial investigation, they contacted Officer Eric Duckett, who with Officer Stevie Hargenrater, are associated with the Animal Cruelty/Neglect Division of the ANNA shelter in Erie. These officers work with state police on animal cruelty cases in Erie and Crawford counties

Duckett said he believes the animals were brought in from out of state. “I cover Crawford and Erie counties and I haven’t had a call about dog fights for five years,” he said. Duckett also said they collected six shell casings from the scene.

Duckett asks that anyone who has any information or who noticed suspicious persons in the area to please contact him at (814) 572-5913.