A Glorieta family woke up Friday without Jilly.

The family's 11-year-old dog was shot and killed Thursday by a New Mexico State Police officer who was on the family's property.

The department tells our media partners at KOB-TV that it will investigate the incident, but initially sees no cause for disciplinary action. KOB-TV did not indicate whether the officer's name was made public.

"Was there things that could have done different? Absolutely, however that's the situation that occurred and so now we'll deal with it," Lt. Robert McDonald said.

Victoria Baca on Thursday morning called police to file a report about an internet scam she recently fell victim to. State Police could not come immediately, so Baca went to run errands with her young children and asked that she be called when the officer was on the way so she could meet the officer at the home.

The officer, she says, went to her home and never called. The officer hopped the fence to her property — a fence with a clearly posted "Beware of Dog" sign — and says one of two dogs Baca had on the property bit him. The officer shot and killed Jilly.

State police said the officer thought Baca was home and entered her property.

Police called Baca after the shooting and when she and her children arrived home, Jilly was dead on the front porch of their home.
"My 4-year-old's response was, 'Did they shoot our dog?'" Baca said. "My son walked up the stairs and started shaking her, trying to wake her up."

Baca said she plans to hire an attorney.

"I called for help and instead I ended up with the loss of a family member," Baca said.

McDonald told KOB-TV it appears the officer was only acting in self defense and he said the department apologizes to the family for the tragic event.

"It's too late for an apology," Baca told KOB-TV. "She's gone, an apology isn't going to bring her back."

To view KOB-TV's broadcast report, CLICK HERE.