animal cruelty Archives - Page 7 of 10

Good and Surprising News for Tampa Dog Rescued from Railroad Tracks

MARCH 11, 2015 UPDATE: Two 17-year-olds have been arrested and charged with felony aggravated animal cruelty in this case.

After Tampa police officers Nick Wilson and Sgt. R. Mills rescued a Pit Bull mix who’d been shot and tied to railroad tracks Wednesday, her prognosis was not too good.

Although she’d been shot twice in the neck and once in the right shoulder, the dog was expected to survive. But Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Service (TBVES) veterinarian Jamie Davidson, who named the dog Cabela, thought her shattered right front leg would need to be amputated.

The good news: Cabela’s leg has been saved.

“Cabela came through surgery with flying colors and four legs,” TBVES posted on its Facebook page Friday. “The surgeon decided to pin it instead of amputation. It will be 6 to 8 weeks before we know whether she will regain full use and motion.”

The rather surprising and sad news: Cabela’s owners saw media coverage of her rescue and contacted the Tampa police department. They said she either escaped or was stolen from their yard four months ago — and, after reuniting with their dog this week, they decided not to bring her home.

“After a long visit where they were able to touch and cuddle with Cabela, they have made the decision to relinquish ownership and allow Cabela to be placed for adoption once her police hold is lifted,” TBVES reported on its Facebook page Friday.

TBVES is covering the cost of Cabela’s veterinary care, but is accepting donations via its website.

“All donations above what is necessary to cover the cost of Cabela’s care will be used for other animals rescued by Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Service (last year over 500 injured, ill or orphaned dogs and cats were cared for at our hospital) or will help care for injured or ill pets whose owners are financially limited,” the website states.

The Tampa police department is still investigating this case and getting many leads, according to USA Today.

A $5,500 reward is being offered for information that leads to an arrest. The reward money was donated by the Humane Society of Tampa Bay and Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay. To contribute to the reward fund, click here.

Anyone with information is asked to call 813-231-6130 or 800-873-TIPS, text CSTB plus your tip to 274637 (CRIMES), or submit your tip via the Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay website.

“Meanwhile, Cabela is resting comfortably, on the road to a full recovery and preparing for her new life!” TBVES wrote on its Facebook page Friday.

Photos via Facebook

Tampa Police Officers Stop Train and Rescue Dog Tied to Tracks

MARCH 11, 2015 UPDATE: Two 17-year-olds have been arrested and charged with felony aggravated animal cruelty in this case.

Talk about a couple of Supermen.

Just minutes before it would hit a Pit Bull mix that had been shot and tied to the railroad tracks, Nick Wilson and Sgt. R. Mills (in the photo above) of the Tampa, Fla., police department were able to stop a train and free the dog.

The officers found the dog last night as they were responding to multiple 911 calls about a shooting in the area. They rushed her to the Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Center.

Despite being shot twice in her neck and once in her right shoulder, the dog, who’s believed to be a year or two old, is expected to survive. Her front right leg will need to be amputated, however.

Dr. Jamie Davidson treated the dog and named her Cabela. She told CNN Cabela’s rehabilitation will take only a week.

“Dogs rebound quick,” Dr. Davidson said. “Really, after everything that this dog has gone through … she’s the sweetest. I mean she’s not angry with people. She’s not growling. She’s been really, really good.”

According to the Tampa Police Department’s Facebook page, Cabela — who’s also being called “R&R” — is scheduled for surgery later today.

Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Center is covering the cost of Cabela’s care, which is expected to be several thousand dollars. To make a donation, contact the hospital.

Dr. Davidson said that once Cabela is healthy, spayed and vaccinated, she will be ready to be adopted by a “good family.”

The Tampa police department is asking anyone with information about this case to call 813-231-6130 or 800-873-TIPS, or submit a tip via Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay.

Photos via Facebook

Idiot Doing Donuts on Frozen River Leaves Dog to Die in Submerged Truck

MARCH 3, 2015 UPDATE: Andrew Mayer was charged today with criminal mischief and careless driving, according to NJ.com. Animal cruelty charges are pending for leaving his dog Rolo, a 2-year-old Boxer/Lab mix, in the cab.

Andrew Mayer will very likely win a Darwin Award one day — the dubious honor given to someone who “significantly improves the gene pool by eliminating themselves from the human race in an obviously stupid way.”

Tragically, in the meantime, Mayer’s dog had to die last night due to his owner’s obvious stupidity.

Mayer, 27, of Toms River, N.J., thought it would be a good idea to drive his truck, with his Boxer mix and a friend, Daniel Jolly, in the cab with him, to the middle of the town’s frozen river and do donuts (i.e., drive around in tight circles).

A witness saw the truck spinning around about 100 feet from shore and then suddenly disappear. Authorities were notified.

For more than 10 hours, local police, the New Jersey State Police and the U.S. Coast Guard spent what a police source told NBC New York was “hundreds of thousands of dollars” searching for the missing truck. The truck — with the dead dog inside the cab — was finally found and recovered late this morning.

Mayer and Jolly turned themselves in today.

Jolly claims he told Mayer not to do donuts, and got out of the truck before it fell through the ice. Mayer was able to get out of the truck before it sank, but said he could not get his dog out, so he left him there to die.

“You’re young and stupid, so you don’t think about these things, there were times when there were 300 cars out there,” Jolly’s uncle, John Fackenthal — who said he’d done the same thing — explained to WABC.

“In the ’70s, cars used to go across all the time,” Chad Krean, who watched the recovery of the truck, told APP.com. “You were a big shot if you made it to Seaside.”

It’s bad enough that these people want to risk their lives to become “big shots.” When the urge to be an idiot strikes, they really need to leave their dogs (who are probably smarter than them) at home. And they should stay home with their dogs.

Mayer and Jolly were released, but the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office is considering filing criminal charges against them. The New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NJSPCA) is also investigating the dog’s death, according to the Shore News Network.

Photo via Twitter

Puppy-Kicking Former Centerplate CEO Pleads Guilty to Cruelty Charge

Des Hague, who resigned as the CEO of Centerplate in September after being caught on camera kicking a Doberman puppy in an elevator, pleaded guilty today to one animal cruelty charge of causing an animal to be in distress, Global News reports.

Hague was initially charged with two animal cruelty counts under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, according to a CTV Vancouver story Jan. 23.

If convicted, Hague faces a fine of up to $75,000, a maximum of two years in jail and a lifetime ban on having pets, CTV Vancouver reported. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 15.

After the video went viral in August, Centerplate’s board of directors put Hague on probation, but didn’t fire him — despite growing outrage and boycotts of Centerplate food, which is sold in many major sports venues.

Per the board of directors’ request, Hague agreed to donate $100,000 to establish a “Sade Foundation,” named after the puppy he kicked, to protect animals in Vancouver, where the kicking took place. Nearly six months later, there has been no news about the foundation.

Hague was also asked to complete 1,000 hours of community service for an animal-welfare organization and to attend anger-management sessions.

In the video, taken inside an elevator July 27 at the upscale Private Residences at Hotel Georgia, Hague can be seen repeatedly kicking the puppy’s stomach, and then choking her by yanking up her leash and suspending her in the air.

When BC SPCA investigators tracked down Hague in one of the condos, they found the puppy, named Sade, in a urine-soaked crate, with food and water bowls beyond her reach. When Sade was removed from the crate, she was skittish and appeared to have been physically abused.

Hague released a contrite statement in late August through his attorney, claiming the incident was “completely and utterly out of character. I am ashamed and deeply embarrassed … a minor frustration with a friend’s pet caused me to lose control of my emotional response.”

Here’s the surveillance video showing Hague as he lost control of his emotional response.

Polar Plunge No Place for Pups (VIDEO)

It was bad enough last summer when some pet parents subjected their poor dogs to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Now an unidentified man in Massachusetts has forced his dog into ice-cold water for a charity “Polar Plunge” — and is facing no animal cruelty charges for doing so.

Saturday’s Polar Plunge event in Wilbraham, Mass., allowed people who made a donation to Special Olympics Massachusetts to jump through a hole in the ice into the freezing-cold Spec Pond. The air temperature Saturday was in the low teens.

Soon after the fundraiser, photos appeared on Facebook of a large, scared-looking yellow Lab being pushed by a man into the pond. Outraged animal lovers left comments blaming Special Olympics Massachusetts for allowing this to happen.

Yesterday the organization released a statement saying it most certainly did not condone the dog’s involuntary participation in its Polar Plunge.

“We are very shocked and disappointed that this happened at what has consistently been a great community event,” the statement said.

But then the Wilbraham Police Department released a rather dismissive statement of its own yesterday on its Facebook page (which is down today “for some modifications,” according to the department’s website). The gist of the statement: The owner said his dog loved swimming in cold water, so what was the problem?

“The owner of the dog is very upset over the situation,” the statement read, according to MassLive.com. “The owner would like everyone to know he has no children and treats his dog as his child. The owner stated that the dog loves the water and at no time was he attempting to hurt the animal. We thank everyone for their concern.”

The statement said police officers and officials from the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA) observed the dog for a few days after the event, and the dog would be examined by a veterinarian. The dog “appeared to be in perfect health,” the statement said.

MSPCA spokesman Rob Halpin told MassLive.com there will be no criminal investigation into the incident, even though he admitted the agency is “shocked and disgusted” by it.

“It’s obviously not how people are supposed to treat a dog, but it doesn’t constitute a violation of the state’s animal cruelty statute,” Halpin said.

While Wilbraham police insist the owner didn’t force his dog into the water, Chris Richie, marketing and communications manager for Massachusetts Special Olympics Massachusetts, told MassLive.com that witnesses had told him otherwise.

“The dog ran away, but the man fetched him, brought him back to the edge and then pushed him in,” Richie said.

Richie said that in the future, dogs will more clearly be banned from such events because it was “shocking, disturbing and not cool. In no way, shape or form can we have any animals around, near or in the water.”

Today the City of Wilbraham released this video of the incident. Do you think charges should be filed?

Photos via MassLive.com, YouTube