An animal control officer shot and killed a pet dog in a Massachusetts town after mistaking it for a coyote in an incident local police are describing as a sad mix-up.

Kirk Rumford’s beloved husky Odin was killed by a Northbridge animal control officer investigating a report of a coyote in the area.

A Northbridge, Massachusetts man is devastated after his Husky puppy was shot and killed by an animal control officer, who thought the dog was a coyote.

The Northbridge animal control officer mistook the loose husky for a coyote when it started to approach him Tuesday, according to police.

The animal control officer went into the woods to look for the coyote and found what they thought was the animal in a threatening position and shot it.