A friend of mine emailed this and asked me to post. This is all I know; I just copied and pasted the article from my email. 
 

Four more dogs found dead in Idaho as dog disappearances, killings mount

By Laura Zuckerman | Reuters – Thu, Apr 11, 2013

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By Laura Zuckerman

SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) - Four dogs have been found beaten in the head and shot to death in ruralsouthern Idaho, authorities said on Thursday, adding to the mysterious disappearance and killing of dozens of dogs that has left residents in that area on edge.

Examinations showed that the German Shepherd mixes, whose carcasses had been dumped in a pile off a highway south of Twin Falls, had been bludgeoned and shot in the head, said Gary Trostel, deputy with the Twin Falls County Sheriff's Office.

"We didn't know until today how they had died: poisoned or shot or what. We knew it was some type of head trauma the way the eyes bulged out and with all the bleeding," Trostel said.

Animal control officers reported last month that roughly 30 dogs had gone missing since November in Twin Falls and nearby communities in a farming region known as the Magic Valley.

A German shepherd discovered by hikers last month in an area known as the Devil's Corral in neighboring Jerome County appeared to have suffered what animal control officers called a "ritualistic execution" in which its head was crushed with rock and its carcass covered with a purple cloth.

Trostel said an examination of that dog showed it had been beaten and shot in the head.

The Humane Society of the United States is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to a conviction in the dog's death. It was unclear if that dog's death was related to the other disappearances and killings.

Trostel said pet owners in the area are in a state of "constant concern". He said residents were being urged to report any stalking or disappearance of pets and to prevent their dogs from roaming.

"We're staying on it and working with what leads we have. We know something is going on but we don't know what it all means. We're trying to find out," said Trostel.

No one has claimed the dead dogs. The carcasses show no signs that the animals had been used for dog fighting, which is illegal in Idaho, Trostel said.

(Editing by Dan Whitcomb)

Not for their skins, then ?  Unless whoever's doing it wants to
come back & collect later, there's a ready market for dog skins
to make stuffed models / toys of cats and dogs.  I have heard
it said GSDs coats are well suited to this trade.

Or maybe we just have a nut with a grudge ?

I'm sad to hear this and glad I don't live there as I own 2 full GSDs and a mix. Though most people think my solid black GSD girl is a mix as they don't know that GSDs come in other colors than the classic red and black/tan and black. If someone killed my dogs I'd be arrested for hunting them down and killing them back. I love my dogs. They are like my children and I won't let anyone get away with hurting or killing them. I hope whoever is killing the GSD/GSD mixes is caught or someone shoots them like they did those poor dogs. It's really odd that no one is claiming the dead dogs though. I would claim my dog so I could give it a proper burial.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/03/21/authorities-baffled-after-dozens-dogs-mysteriously-vanish-in-idaho/

I have heard of people in my circle and others circles who have had dogs taken from their cars randomly all over Idaho. One of them was my sister who was moving from one place to another, went in to the store to grab some drinks, came back, and her dog was gone. But it wasn't only German Shepherds. Her's was a Pit, and there doesn't seem to be any bias on what breed gets taken great or small. It seems to be a big issue that is growing in these parts. It's awful.