A 39-year-old mother and her three children were found dead of gunshot wounds Tuesday morning at the family's home in Deer Park, police said.

The victims were Ashley Auzenne and her children, Parrish, 11, Eleanor, 9, and Lincoln, 7. A school principal notified parents Tuesday afternoon that one of the victims, presumably Parrish, was a student at Bonnette Junior High School and two were students at Deer Park Elementary School.

"The Deer Park Police Department is not ready to say exactly how this terrible crime occurred, but it does have enough information to say other citizens in our City have nothing to fear in their own homes," officials said in a statement.

The father does not live at the home, but he has spoken with investigators, police said.

Police learned of the four deaths when they responded to an 8:45 a.m. call requesting a welfare check at a house in the 1400 block of New Orleans Street, said Lt. Chris Brown with Deer Park Police. Authorities do not suspect it was a home invasion.

Brown said there is no suspect in custody and they are not actively searching for one. Officials would not say whether they think the case involved a suspected murder-suicide.

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The Harris County medical examiner's office has removed the bodies from the scene and will continue to evaluate. Investigators were seen carrying a seemingly uninjured gray cat from the home and placing it in a portable crate.

A note to middle school families from John Wegman, the principal at Bonnette Junior High, said grief counseling would be made available for students throughout the week.

"Reports of the children’s deaths have already reached the local news media, which means that rumors will likely spread during the day today," it said. " It’s possible that other students might hear about this tragic news, and friends of the three students could have their own needs."

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