Indiana rescue operator charged with strangling dog taken from shelter

Kayla Dillenburg, 30, has been charged with felony animal torture and fraud in Butler, Indiana, after authorities say she strangled a dog she had recently removed from an Indianapolis shelter.

Court documents indicate Dillenburg operated Welcome Home Canine Rescue from her home. Investigators allege she targeted specific animals because they carried high financial pledges raised by social media donors trying to save shelter pets from euthanasia. She pulled 21 dogs from Indianapolis Animal Care Services over a 10-day period in late April 2026.

The criminal charges center on a dog named Motley. Records show he had $925 in public pledges at the time he was scheduled for rescue. Dillenburg picked him up from Indianapolis on April 28. However, records show Motley died and was dropped off for cremation that same day.

DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office Animal Control Officer Erika Hedge filed the affidavit of probable cause. Hedge stated that Dillenburg told an Indianapolis donor that Motley was alive and had an approved adoption lined up. Investigators concluded Dillenburg deceived the donor into paying for care after the animal was already dead. Dillenburg later claimed Motley died at her home of pneumonia and denied euthanizing him.

Investigators spoke with a former friend who said Dillenburg approached her in April with a scheme to make money by pulling dogs with high pledges. On a recorded phone call, Dillenburg admitted she “choked that dog out” after claiming he went after her child.

Officer Hedge outlined the basis for the charges. “I believe Kayla Dillenburg has knowingly, intentionally, and recklessly tortured and/or mutilated a dog in her care because, by her own admission, as stated in a recorded conversation, she strangled Motley to death,” Hedge said. She added that there was no record of Dillenburg providing Motley medical care or a diagnosis.

Dillenburg appeared before a judge on Friday. She entered a plea of not guilty, and a public defender was appointed to represent her. Dillenburg was released on her own recognizance and is scheduled to appear in court again in January 2027.