Category: Grrr

Former Baltimore Ravens Player Terrence Cody Indicted on Felony Dog Abuse Charges

MARCH 24, 2016 UPDATE: Terrence Cody was sentenced today to nine months in the Baltimore County Detention Center.

terrence cody nfl killed dogTerrence Cody, who was cut from the Baltimore Ravens last week while he was under investigation by the Baltimore County State’s attorney’s office for animal cruelty, was indicted today on 15 charges, including two felony charges for aggravated cruelty involving his dog.

These are the charges announced by the Baltimore County Police, according to the Baltimore Sun:

  • Two felony counts of aggravated animal cruelty related to the death of his dog, a Bullmastiff from Spain he bought for $8,000. If convicted, Cody faces a maximum of six years in prison and up to a $5,000 fine.
  • Five misdemeanor counts of animal abuse or neglect involving the same dog, punishable by up to 90 days in prison and at most a $5,000 fine.
  • One misdemeanor illegal possession of an alligator charge and five misdemeanor counts of animal abuse or neglect of the alligator. These charges are punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
  • The remaining misdemeanor charges are drug related.

Further information about the nature of the abuse wasn’t provided. According to Maryland law, aggravated animal cruelty is to “intentionally mutilate, torture, cruelly beat or cruelly kill an animal.”

John Cox, deputy state attorney for Baltimore County, told the Baltimore Sun that Cody was not involved in dog fighting.

Cody’s agent, Peter Schaffer, said last week that Cody’s Bullmastiff had died from worms. He said when the dog became seriously ill, Cody had taken him to a vet.

Schaffer was upset with the Ravens for canning his client. “This young man’s dog has died and the Ravens were so worried about possible ramifications from the league that they took a preemptive strike,” he told the Baltimore Sun. “The fact that the NFL has created such an atmosphere of hysteria that tramples on due process rights, the right of law and common decency is a tremendous problem in our league and our society.”

The “atmosphere of hysteria” is in reference to the NFL’s personal conduct policy, which was toughened up last year after the suspension of another Ravens team member, running back Ray Rice. In that domestic abuse case, an elevator camera captured Rice punching his fiancée in the face, knocking her unconscious. Rice later won his appeal of the suspension and it was overturned. Last week ESPN reported that the NFL Players Association had filed a grievance against the NFL to challenge the new personal conduct policy.

Schaffer insisted that Cody loved his dog. “If the dog was being treated cruelly, why take it to a vet?” he said, according to TribLIVE Sports. “When the dog passed away, Terrence was in tears.”

Cody has not yet been assigned a court date.

Photo via Twitter

GoDaddy Pulls Offensive Puppy-for-Sale Super Bowl Commercial

GoDaddy — you know, the internet service provider whose former CEO bragged about shooting an elephant (a story I broke in 2011) — announced this afternoon that, due to growing social-media outrage, it has pulled an offensive commercial it planned to air during Sunday’s Super Bowl game.

The spot was apparently a bone-headed parody of a tear-jerking Budweiser commercial that is also airing during the game. (Budweiser is on a roll with tear-jerking commercials featuring dogs. Have you seen “Friends Are Waiting“?) The Budweiser spot features a lost puppy.

So did GoDaddy’s commercial, which was deleted from YouTube this afternoon. As it begins, three Golden Retriever puppies are in the back of a pickup truck. One of them jumps from the moving vehicle. As violin music swells, the puppy manages to walk all the way back home, through a rainstorm and across highways and train tracks.

“It’s Buddy! I’m so glad you made it home!” his dog mom says, happily scooping Buddy up into her arms.

“…Because I just sold you on this website I built with GoDaddy.”

What the hell?

According to the New York Times last July, GoDaddy was switching to the ad agency Barton F. Graf 9000, which created the spot, in an effort to change its image.

“The desire to alter brand perceptions was prompted by factors that included changes in ownership and the executive ranks at GoDaddy, a growing backlash to the sexy ads and a realization that more women were becoming part of the company’s target audience of small-business owners,” the Times reported.

Barb Rechterman, chief marketing officer of GoDaddy, told the Times, “We are for the entrepreneur, we are for women, we are for women entrepreneurs.”

Wait, so women and entrepreneurs want to see commercials supporting the online sale of dogs?

What the hell?

Bad, bad move, GoDaddy. Maybe no one shot an elephant this time, but you sure shot yourselves in the foot.

The internet provider Namecheap.com is offering to make a donation to the Humane Society of the United States for every account transferred over from GoDaddy (use the code PUPPYLOVE). Namecheap was also one of the first internet providers to donate account-transfer proceeds to elephant-welfare organizations after the news of the elephant killing broke. This is not a paid endorsement, but i Still Love Dogs is powered by Namecheap, most certainly not GoDaddy.

Photo via YouTube

No Charges yet for Shooter of Dog Playing ‘Too Rough’ at Houston Dog Park

MARCH 10, 2015 UPDATE: Diesel’s shooter, Joseph Potts, has been arrested and charged with one count of felony cruelty to a non-livestock animal.

A man at the Bay Area Dog Park in Houston yesterday morning thought a 2-year-old, black-and-white Staffordshire Bull Terrier named Diesel was playing too roughly with his own dog.

So the man kicked Diesel, knocking him down, then pulled out a handgun and shot him three times at close range in the back and leg. Diesel was rushed to a local emergency animal hospital, where he had to be euthanized a few hours later due to the extent of his injuries.

“I just can’t believe somebody would do that when the dog wasn’t even being aggressive,” Melanie Merritt, who saw the shooting, told KHOU.

Another eyewitness told KPRC-TV the dogs appeared to have been playfully tussling at the Bay Area Dog Park. “His dog was not in danger,” he said. “I witnessed everything. No one was in danger.”

No charges have yet been filed against the man, who has not been identified.

While it’s legal to carry rifles and shotguns in Texas, handguns require a permit. Using one to kill a pet dog, in an area filled with families on a weekend morning, seems not only cruel but downright dangerous.

After being questioned by Harris County sheriff’s deputies, the shooter — who, according to KHOU, told them he did it in self defense when the “Pit Bull” tried to attack his dog — was released. The Sheriff’s Office issued a statement this morning that it will bring its completed investigation of the case to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office for further review.

“He doesn’t have any remorse,” the eyewitness told KPRC-TV. “He’s angry. All of that aggression. We’re all telling him, ‘I hope you go to jail.’ I don’t understand how they are not pressing charges.”

Last night KPRC-TV reporter Bill Spencer said he spoke via phone to Diesel’s pet parents, who plan to press criminal charges against the shooter today.

“They’re absolutely heartsick and they are sick to their stomachs,” Spencer said. “And they are confused as well — shocked that the man who shot their dog is not behind bars tonight.”

Photo via Twitter

 

 

Adoption Offers Pour in for Dog Abandoned When Owners Moved

A family moved out of their Phoenix house Wednesday, leaving behind a sofa by the curb for trash pickup — along with their pet dog.

When a neighbor got home from work late Thursday afternoon, she noticed the 3-year-old Pit Bull hunkered down between the sofa cushions, and snapped a picture of him.

“I guess the old owners left him there,” the neighbor, who declined to be identified, told ABC15.

After unsuccessfully trying to contact a rescue, the neighbor called Mariposa County Animal Care & Control (MCACC), which picked up the dog and then transferred him to the Arizona Humane Society.

In the meantime, the neighbor posted her photo on Facebook. It has gone viral, with thousands of shares.

“We’ve been inundated with calls, people, rescue groups, people that want to step up and help,” the MCACC’s Melissa Gable told ABC15.

When Gable saw the photo, her reaction was probably similar to that of most animal lovers.

“I almost cried,” she told ABC15. “He looks so pitiful and tiny.”

The Phoenix Police Department is investigating the case. The dog’s owner, if he’s found, may be (should be) facing animal cruelty charges.

Gable told azfamily.com the dog is doing well. “We just want to let the public know that he’s okay,” she said.

Photo via Facebook

Cool or Cruel? Black Lab Boards Bus Alone to Visit Dog Park

Eclipse, a 2-year-old Black Lab, is a regular on a Seattle bus that makes a stop at a local dog park, where she, uh, disembarks.

There’s nothing especially newsworthy about that — except for the fact that Eclipse usually makes the journey alone.

“All the bus drivers know her. She sits here just like a person does,” bus rider Tiona Rainwater told KOMO News yesterday. “She makes everybody happy. How could you not love this thing?”

Eclipse is not homeless. She lives near a bus stop with her dog dad, Jeff Young, who told KOMO News, “She gets on the bus without me, and I catch up with her at the dog park. It’s not hard to get on. She gets on in front of her house and she gets off at the dog park, three or four stops later.”

Young said his dog’s solo rides began when she became too impatient waiting for him to finish a cigarette at the bus stop. When the bus arrived, Eclipse hopped on board by herself.

“She’s been here the last two years, so she’s been urbanized, totally,” Young said. “She’s a bus-riding, sidewalk-walking dog. Probably once a week I get a phone call. ‘Hi. I have your dog Eclipse here on 3rd and Bell.’ I have to tell them, ‘No. She’s fine. She knows what she’s doing.'”

A Metro Transit spokesman told KOMO News, “She would be much safer in the world if she had her owner on a leash.”

I have to agree with that spokesman, which is what puts this story in the “Grrr” category instead of “Awww.”

As Robert Pregulman writes on his Seattle Dog Spot blog, “While I think Eclipse is an incredibly smart dog to have figured out how to get to the dog park safely by herself, Young should have her on a leash and ride with her to the dog park, not just because it’s the law, but more importantly, it’s just not safe for her to be alone in the middle of a major city.”

To ensure Eclipse doesn’t get hurt or stolen — and to avoid a fine for breaking Seattle’s leash laws — here’s hoping Young starts joining his dog on her bus rides.

Photo via Facebook

Exit mobile version