Fort Macleod residents Ben Louwerse and wife Claudia with their rescue dog Iris, 2020.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Ben Louwerse

A couple is reeling after their beloved dog was shot in the head and dumped in the North Thompson River earlier this week.

Ben Louwerse and wife Claudia from Fort Macleod, Alberta were at Louwerse’s parents’ property in Clearwater getting married on Saturday, July 23.

“Clearwater is my hometown," Louwerse said. “My wife, our three-month-old son and our beloved dog Iris were there for our wedding.”

Two days later the couple was staying at a sister’s house next door to Louwerse’s parents’ property, when an unexpected and tragic incident occurred.

“My parents have often allowed people who have worked for them to stay on the property in their campers and it was one of these individuals who shot our dog Iris because she was barking at a cat which wasn’t even his cat,” Louwerse said.

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Louwerse said he saw the man go to the river with something in his arms and throw it in.

“We all got a sick feeling and immediately tried to find Iris,” he said. “My wife and I ran barefoot all the way down the river as far as we could trying to find her, not knowing she had been shot in the head.” 

Louwerse said he returned to his sister’s place to get a vehicle and some shoes to keep looking when the man who dumped the dog told him to stop looking.

“He told me he had shot her in the head,” he said. “When I demanded to know why he had done that he said ‘what else could I do? She was attacking a cat.' I am extremely thankful for my brother-in-law for restraining me and preventing me from doing something I’d regret.”

Iris, a mix-breed rescue pup with her family in Fort Macleod, 2021.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Ben Louwerse

Louwerse said Iris loved cats and they have two cats at home she plays and sleeps with. When she plays with them she bounces around them in a circle barking, but has never harmed them.

The man who shot and dumped the dog packed up his things and left once the police were called.

“We don’t believe he was in legal possession of the firearm he used,” Louwerse said. “As of now we don’t know where he has gone and are hoping we won’t be seeing him again.”

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The couple is asking that hikers, bikers, boaters and drivers keep an eye out for the body of Iris so they can retrieve it and bury it.

“With the river being so full it’s possible she’s become tangled in a log jam or a fallen tree along the banks,” Louwerse said. “Our family has been robbed of any form of closure. We want to say our goodbyes and bury her with the dignity she deserves.”

Iris was a small to medium sized blonde mixed breed with a beaded collar, the size of a small border collie.

“Iris was the sweetest dog I’ve ever known and I can’t imagine life without her,” Louwerse said. “She would check on my son whenever he cried, putting her head in his bassinet and resting it on his legs to calm him. She loved everyone and everything.”

Sergeant Grant Simpson with the Clearwater RCMP detachment confirmed the report was made but didn’t give details about the case.

If you see Iris please contact Ben Louwerse here.

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