The Cranesville man accused of shooting nine dogs and killing seven appeared in Crawford County court Thursday morning for sentencing.

Community members and animal rights activists told us they’re disappointed with the outcome.

After shooting nine German shepherds in June of last year, Skylar Martin, 22, was sentenced to 30 days in prison, three months of house arrest and seven years probation.

Martin entered a plea bargain and was convicted of one count of aggravated cruelty to animals this summer. Now, animal advocates are speaking out.

“It’s hard when we don’t get the support from the DA’s office and from the judges. We’re just doing our job,” said Ruth Thompson, founder of the ANNA Shelter. “Spending thousands of dollars, hundreds of hours of time to prosecute these charges to have nine felonies dropped to one, it really just doesn’t make any sense.”

ANNA Shelter Humane Officer Eric Duckett led this animal cruelty investigation. He said Martin drove several miles from his home to a home near Springboro and shot nine german shepherds that were in an outdoor kennel.

Duckett says seven of those German shepherds were killed and the remaining two were severely injured. He added he was not given the opportunity to speak at the sentencing and he believes the dogs were not served justice.

“The fact that the judge acknowledged those psychopathic tendencies and had concerns about that is just appalling that he would put this kid in jail for one month and say, ‘Okay now go back to the general public,’ like it’s appalling. It truly is. It makes no sense and I think if you ask anyone from the general public, it’s disgusting,” said Duckett.

One of the surviving dogs has been adopted. The new owners said while they’re disappointed by the sentencing, they’re optimistic about the dog’s future.

“It’s been life-changing. I absolutely love that dog with all my heart. My entire family loves that dog, he loves us. He’s a full-grown German shepherd who thinks he’s a lapdog,” said Dustin Thornton, who adopted a surviving dog. “I’m glad that I was able to help but I did it just as much for myself as I did for him. He’s a beautiful dog and he deserves a good home and I’m happy that we’re able to provide that for him.