The dog was treated for the injury at a local veterinarian’s office and is recovering at home, according to owner Sarah Black.
Black said her daughter was outside nearby and heard the dog yelp after being shot, but she was uninjured.
“The number one thing is I’m glad my daughter’s OK and my dog is not seriously injured,” Black said last week.
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Black said she moved to Waynesville from New Lebanon, and was used to hearing shooting.
“We’ve heard gunshots a lot. We weren’t scared at all,” she said.
The incident was referred by Waynesville police to the sheriff’s office because evidence indicated the shot came from Wayne Twp.
Waynesville Police Chief Gary Copeland, also the village administrator, said it was the first such incident in his 12 years there.
“I was advised that the county has similar cases to this, and they have gone before the prosecutor with no charges,” Copeland said in an email.
County Prosecutor David Fornshell declined to comment on the case, since it could be referred to his office.
There have been other isolated incidents involving stray bullets reported around the Dayton area.
RELATED: Township says it won’t give up on gun range battle
In August, a Butler County judge found no evidence a bullet that landed inside a woman’s St. Clair Twp. home came from a shooting range one mile away.
Last February, Huber Heights police investigated “target practice” that led to stray bullets damaging a business.
RELATED: Huber Heights business damaged by stray bullets
In 2006, Waynesville police investigated after a high-caliber bullet struck a student’s book bag during a soccer match at Waynesville High School. No one was injured in what police said was thought to be accidental.
In 2005, residents of Laura Marie Drive, north of Waynesville, asked for help after reporting bullets striking their homes. School buses were temporarily rerouted. One resident’s mother-in-law found a bullet while cleaning her sitting room.
“I didn’t realize it until the next day,” Claudia Riedel said in 2005, recalling when she discovered broken glass.
Prosecutors declined to seek search warrants then for lack of evidence.
After the shooting of Otis this month, Warren County Chief Deputy Barry Riley offered this advice:
“Everyone should practice exceptional firearms safety:
Treat all guns as if they are loaded;
Ensure you are always pointing your weapon in a safe direction and not sweeping across someone or something;
Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot;
MORE: Iowa woman hit by deer-hunter’s bullet while cleaning stove
Know your target and what is beyond;
Properly carry, transport and store your gun in a secure and safe location when not in use.”
Riley was unable to provide data on the frequency of shooting reports in the unincorporated areas of Warren County, where his office has jurisdiction.
He did say, “This is an uncommon call actually.”
Otis was shot while standing by a trampoline in the front yard on a day when Black and other neighbors reported hearing gun shots, according to reports.
It was the eve of a four-day season for hunting deer with a muzzle-loader, according to the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
Black and Waynesville police made Facebook posts on the incident.
After seeing Black’s post, Mike Logan, a Waynesville resident, brought it up during last Monday’s village council meeting, according to Councilwoman Kimberley Kaan.
Discharging a firearm in Waynesville is against the law , but permitted in the township, Kaan said.
Kaan said the entire council shared Logan’s concern. She suggested it could have been worse.
“It could have been a child,” she said.
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