A veterinary student was killed in a murder-suicide just two months before graduation and days before she was expected to attend job interviews . Whitney Engler , 27 , was found shot to death in a home she shared with Joseph Hein , 24 , in Davis California , on Friday . The body of the University of California student was discovered after police staged a seven-hour stand-off outside the duplex , believing there was an armed gunman inside . Scroll down for video . Veterinary student Whitney Engler , 27 , was found shot to death in a home she shared with Joseph Hein , 24 , in Davis California , on Friday following a murder-suicide . Police received a mysterious 911 call from a man saying two people had been shot to death inside . According to the Sacramento Bee they initially thought it was a hoax , so only entered the building at 1:30am when they threw tear gas through the window . Authorities have not publicly revealed who pulled the trigger , but Whitney 's parents told the California paper officials said her daughter was the victim . She and Hein were said to be in a platonic relationship and in a short-term rental agreement - creating mystery around what prompted the tragic events to unfold . After father , Dennis Engler , told the Bee she moved in with Hein in December because the house she had lived in was too crowded . He said the deal was that she would cook in exchange for five months free rent . Whitney 's family have said she and Hein ( left ) had a platonic relationship . He uploaded a picture to Facebook of a card ( left ) which read : 'Here lies Joseph Hein , 1991-2015 , devoted friend , lover of __________ ' last year . He also posted images of a black semi-automatic rifle to the social media account . He posted a number of pictures of a semi-automatic rifle on his Facebook last year as well as an image of a card which read : 'Here lies Joseph Hein , 1991-2015 , devoted friend , lover of __________ . ' It had a Cards Against Humanity branding at the bottom , referring to the popular card game . The space is supposed to be filled by a word . Mr Engler said : It ’ s mystifying . Nothing I ’ ve learned leads to even a hint of an explanation , which might never be forthcoming . Whitney was a lover of animals and had been looking after a service dog called Rosie at the time . It has since been found after her friends set up a search in the area . Friend and fellow veterinary student Anjolie Anjali Daryani , who led the search for Whitney 's pets , said on Facebook on Saturday : 'Last night I lost a good friend , and the world loss an amazing person . Friend Anjolie Anjali Daryani said Whitney was only two months away from graduating and had a number of job interviews planned this weekend . 'Whitney Engler I hope that you rest in peace and know that we are all doing everything we can to find Rosie . ' I will never forget all of our time spent together.. whether it was horseriding , training our dogs , going out to dinners , going shopping , or just hanging out I will miss those moments dearly . ' She told Fox 40 : 'She had job interviews set up this weekend , she ’ s less than 2 months away from graduation . ' On Saturday night , a vigil was held by Whitney 's friends on campus . More than 200 people gathered on the patio of Gladys Valley Hall . Police received a mysterious 911 call on Friday from a man saying two people had been shot to death inside . It prompted a stand-off outside the building which lasted for seven hours .
Whitney Engler , 1991-2015 , was shot to death at a duplex in Davis , California . Her body was found beside that of her roommate Joseph Hein , 24 . He posted an image of card reading : 'Here lies Joseph Hein , 27 ' on Facebook in December along with pictures of black semi-automatic rifles . Whitney 's friends say she had a number of job interviews lined up . Police are yet to confirm who pulled the trigger - but her parents have claimed she is the victim .