Weld County Sheriff’s deputies spent at least 14 hours hunting for a missing, alleged killer dog before finding it dead Tuesday at the hands of a homeowner protecting his flock.

The dog, described in a sheriff’s department news release as a white German Shepherd – and potentially part wolf – belonged to an inmate of the Weld County Jail and escaped its yard in the 1800 block of Dilmont Avenue in east Greeley not long after deputies first visited the inmate’s home on a report of neglected animals.

Deputies on June 12 found two dogs at the residence belonging to Joseph Givan, and they provided fresh food and water and worked with family members to ensure someone would care for the dogs, according to the release.

Two days later, deputies responded to a report of a white dog at large.

Three days after that, animal control officers spent nine hours searching for the dog, now alleged to have killed another dog.

On Monday, animal control officers spent another five hours trying to find the dog. They did, and hit it with three tranquilizer darts. But the dog escaped unfazed, according to the release. They left traps for the dog but weren’t successful.

On Tuesday, officers responded to a report of a dog that killed a lamb in the 3000 block of east 18th Street.

“When the animal control officer arrived, it was learned a white dog had gotten into a nearby property and killed three lambs,” according to the release. “The homeowner shot and killed the dog in an effort to protect his livestock.”

Officers believe it was the same dog that got loose in the 1800 block of Dilmont Avenue.