DEMOTTE, Ind. (AP) — Northwestern Indiana police say a man who killed three dogs that threatened deer he’s raising as livestock was within his legal rights in killing the dogs.

DeMotte Police Chief Thomas Jarrette said Thursday the man who fatally shot the dogs broke no law in protecting his property.

Police say the man shot the dogs Monday “as a last resort” after trying unsuccessfully to run them off after finding them trying to dig into his deer enclosure.

The dogs escaped from Dana Drew’s yard in DeMotte about 30 miles south of Gary. Drew says her family is devastated by the killings of the 6-year-old husky and two of her 3-year-old offspring.

She tells The (Munster) Times her neighbor had “many other options than to shoot three friendly, domesticated dogs.”