Her English Mastiff Jackson had been playing in the backyard while she was inside. When she called him in it looked like he was covered in insect bites.

But when she looked closer she realized that the truth was a whole lot worse.

Jackson was in fact covered in bullet holes.

”I was completely shocked, I didn’t know what to think,” Hayden told WXIN.

When she realized that Jackson had been shot she took him straight to the vet. When the vet examined Jackson, he found masses of tiny bullets that had been fired from a BB gun.

“There was one stuck under his eyelid, one in his ear, one in his knee, they were everywhere,” Hayden says.

There were so many that the vet had to shave almost all of Jackson’s fur to take out the plastic shells. He removed 27 bullets in total and was forced to leave 20 where they were.

On top of that, the vet found 20 more bullet holes in Jackson’s small body.

He had been shot over 70 times.

“I have never seen an animal shot that many times. It’s a very bad case and it’s sad to see,” Seymour Police Department Assistant Chief Craig Hayes said.

I don’t understand how someone could do something so evil to a dog, least of all when the dog has never harmed anybody.

It was suspected that the shots came from a nearby yard and police were hot on the suspect’s heels.

It didn’t take long for them to find bullets and a gun was hidden in a neighbor’s home.

In addition to a BB gun and pellets, the police found methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in his home, Daily Mail reported.

I really hope the person responsible gets a long prison sentence and pays the price for their crime.

I truly believe that when they get out they should never be able to get close to an animal again.

Despite his big trauma, Jackson is recovering well, according to Hayden.

Watch this news report about the incident:

Although BB and pellet guns are often referred to as “toys” or “fake” by some news outlets, these are real guns that can cause real damage. 

When a crime is committed with a BB or pellet gun, it should be considered exactly what it is. It’s a real gun, and criminals who use it against the innocent should be charged as such.

I really hope that Jackson springs back to full health soon and that he can play happily in his backyard again.

Share this video if you think all animal abusers should go to jail!