SPRINGBORO — Members of a local pet rescue group and a Springboro homeowners association have asked authorities for help in finding those suspected of fatally shooting a dog found Sunday on the golf course at the Sycamore Creek Country Club.

The owners of the dog, who live close by, also said they are concerned about firearms being used so close to their neighborhood.

Ace, a 10-pound Coton de Tulear, was found shot to death Sunday on the golf course, off Lytle-Five Points Road in Clearcreek Twp., just north of Springboro limits, according to Kit Kitchel, the pet rescue group volunteer who identified the dog at the golf course.

“It’s odd that someone would do this,” Kitchel said. “There is no explanation. There is no reason.”

The little white dog slipped its collar Friday while walking in the Greenleaf Village subdivision with Ken Karnosh and his wife, Patty, who had just adopted it from Puppy Pals, a Dayton-area pet rescue group.

After searching themselves, Karnosh and his wife contacted Kitchel from whom they had adopted the dog.

They searched together past dark Friday and again Saturday, when others, including rescue group members, joined the search and distributed fliers.

On Sunday, course Superintendent Bruce Burke saw the flier, notified the searchers and the dog was buried on the course.

“The kids are devastated,” said Karnosh, a board member for the Greenleaf Village homeowners association.

The owners were not only angry about the incident, but expressed worry at the use of firearms so near to their homes. “That’s our big concern,” Karnosh said.

Discharging firearms outside city limits in Ohio is permitted, except in certain areas including into or near homes, churches, schools, cemeteries or other “prohibited premises.” Shooting dogs also could prompt animal cruelty charges, unless the shooting is in self-defense or the dog was killing livestock, according to authorities.

Clearcreek Twp. police are handling the investigation.

On Monday, Burke said he called police after he was harassed by a man accusing him of contributing to the dog’s death.

Also Monday, the dog’s body was exhumed and examined by a veterinarian, according to Puppy Pals members.

The veterinarian declined to comment.

Puppy Pals is offering a $500 reward for information about the shooting, volunteer Sarah Anderson said.

Puppy Pals can be reached at http://www.puppypalsrescue.com or (937) 886-9012.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2261 or lbudd@DaytonDailyNews.com.