A Blackfoot man whose elderly dog went missing the night before Thanksgiving found the canine brutally killed just six days later.

Alan Alderfer, who has lived in Blackfoot for six years, said he let his dog, a poodle named Starbuck, out around 8 p.m. the night before Thanksgiving.

After a few hours, Alderfer realized Starbuck was missing and became immediately worried. It was a cold night and his dog was older. Alderfer said he searched for hours that night and continued the search over the next few days. Eventually, he began to think that perhaps a wild animal had killed Starbuck.

But six days later, he found that the reality was much worse. As Alderfer looked out his window one morning, he saw Starbuck on the side of the road. He said he instantly knew his beloved dog was dead and had to take a moment to gather himself.

“It took me about 20 minutes because I thought, ‘Oh, my gosh, I don’t want to do this,’” Alderfer said.

When he did go to look, Alderfer discovered that Starbuck had been cut directly down his windpipe from throat to chest. There were no other wounds on the dog, but Alderfer said the sight was horrific.

“He was hurt so badly,” he said. “And the anguish on his face looked like someone had terrorized him. I don’t even want to think about it.”

Alderfer said he filed a report with the Blackfoot Police Department, and an investigation is underway.

Blackfoot police could not be reached for comment.

“Mainly, I want to warn the neighbors,” Alderfer said. “What compels a person to do that to a sweet little animal? And who knows where they’re going to stop? I don’t know how a person could do that. It would take a real sick person.”

Alderfer added that due to the circumstances, he believed Starbuck’s death was a personal attack.

“He ended up right there on the corner in broad daylight,” he said. “They knew exactly where that dog came from. It was almost like someone was saying, ‘Ha ha.’”

Alderfer said he has no idea what could have happened to his dog in the time that it was missing. It appeared to him that Starbuck had been killed recently when he was found.

“He was around somewhere for days and days,” he said. “I don’t know. I can’t explain it. There are no words.”

Alderfer, who is single and lives alone, said Starbuck had been his companion for about 20 years and had survived many accidents in that time, including a rollover car crash that Alderfer was in on Father’s Day.

“I completely rolled my van, went off the road, flipped upside down, and my dog lived through it and I lived through it,” he said. “He lived through all these weird things without a scratch, and then this happens to him.”

After Starbuck’s death, Alderfer said he adopted a husky from the animal shelter to keep him company.

“Some people lose their kids and their parents, so it could be a lot worse,” he said. “But with a dog, it’s just a tragedy to lose such a helpless animal. Whoever did this has no moral compass.”