animal cruelty Archives - Page 9 of 10

Want to Tattoo or Pierce Your Dog in New York? Fuhgeddaboudit

New York pet parents: Thinking about getting a heart tattoo on your dog’s chest with “DOGMOM” written across it? Or maybe a teeny, diamond bone stud for his pierced ear?

Of course you aren’t — and anyway, fuhgeddaboudit.

Today Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law a ban on cosmetic tattoos and piercing for dogs, cats and other pets.

“This is animal abuse, pure and simple,” he said in a press release. “I’m proud to sign this common-sense legislation and end these cruel and unacceptable practices in New York once and for all.”

New York now joins Pennsylvania as the only two U.S. states to specifically outlaw pet tattoos and piercings, although intentionally inflicting pain on animals would likely fall under many states’ cruelty laws. Similar legislation is currently working its way through the New Jersey state government.

The New York bill was introduced in 2011 by Assembly member Linda Rosenthal. She was motivated to do so after she heard about someone in Pennsylvania selling “gothic kittens,” with piercings on their ears, necks and along their spines.

More recently, Brooklyn artist Alex “Mistah Metro” Avgerakis tattooed his dog and posted the photo (above) on Instagram. He claimed he did it while his dog was still unconscious after having surgery. In April 2013, Ernesto Rodriguez of North Carolina did the same thing to his dog. “Got bored, so she got inked,” he wrote in the description of a photo he posted on Facebook.

“People can choose to tattoo or pierce their own bodies, but their pets do not enjoy that same luxury,” Rosenthal said in the press release. “Anyone who would subject an animal to needless pain and suffering to make a fashion statement should be guilty of a crime, and with my law, they will now face stiff penalties.”

Violators of the ban, which goes into effect in 120 days, will face a fine of up to $250 and up to 15 days in jail.

Markings for identification are exempt from the ban, as are ear tags on rabbits and guinea pigs.

“I am pleased that the governor signed my bill into law,” Rosenthal said. “Doing so sends a strong message that this kind of behavior constitutes animal abuse and that it will not be tolerated.”

Photo via Instagram

German Shepherd Chews Off His Foot to Escape From Chain

DEC. 19, 2014 UPDATE: Rocky has a loving new forever home and an appropriate new name!

When the owners of Rocky, an 11-month-old German Shepherd, dumped him at OC Animal Care in Orange County, Calif., earlier this week, they said they had no idea why their dog had chewed off half of his own rear right foot.

The shelter notified Tiffany Norton of Coastal German Shepherd Rescue O.C., who immediately took Rocky to Alicia Pet Care Center in Mission Viejo for treatment.

“It was likely a situation where he became entangled in a rope or chain that basically cut off the circulation on his foot, and he chewed his foot to free himself,” Norton told KABC.

Veterinarian Matthew Wheaton agreed with Norton’s assessment.

“He was likely tied to a pole, stake or tree via a long chain and got his back foot tangled in the chain, which cut off blood supply to the foot,” he told the Orange County Register.

“Chewing off a part of the body that is devitalized is likely a highly evolved trait,” he said. “The only dogs that would survive an issue like this would be those that would take to drastic measures to escape what they were tangled in.”

In 2007, California became the first state to enact a law that limits the chaining or tethering of dogs. Since then, 18 additional states have enacted similar laws.

As the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) points out, tethering dogs is both inhumane and dangerous.

“An otherwise friendly and docile dog, when kept continuously chained, becomes neurotic, unhappy, anxious and often aggressive,” notes the HSUS. “Dogs have even been found with collars embedded in their necks, the result of years of neglect at the end of a chain.”

According to California’s Health and Safety Code, dogs are not to be tethered for more than three hours during a 24-hour period or other time period approved by animal control.

“I have managed a handful of cases over the years of trauma secondary to tethering or chaining a dog,” Wheaton told the OC Register. “It’s sad and frustrating because it is so avoidable.”

Ryan Drabek, director of OC Animal Care, said animal control is investigating the case.

Rocky’s injury was gruesome. “It definitely took my breath away,” veterinarian Maria Bromme told KABC. “It was really heartbreaking to see. We saw exposed bone, exposed muscle, the infection that started to set in.”

The young pup’s entire leg had to be amputated.

He’s now recuperating, and has already adjusted to having only three legs. He will stay with a foster family for two weeks, and then be available for adoption into a loving forever home.

Coastal German Shepherd Rescue O.C. is covering the cost of Rocky’s surgery and medical treatment.

Photos via Facebook

Green Acre Kennel Owners Charged with 22 Counts of Felony Animal Cruelty

NOV. 13, 2014 UPDATE: Austin and Logan Flake both pleaded not guilty today to multiple charges alleging they allowed 21 dogs to die at their kennel, ABC15 Arizona reports. “To accuse them of being animal killers is outrageous,” their attorney, Jack Wilenchik, told reporters. “The dogs were dead or in the process of dying. My clients comforted the dogs. People don’t understand the facts.” The couple’s next court date has been set for Jan. 2.

When nearly two dozen dogs died in June at the Green Acre Boarding Kennel in Gilbert, Ariz., the kennel owners claimed the dogs had chewed through a power cord, causing the air conditioner to shut off. They said the dogs — whose bodies were crammed together in a small room — had died of heat exhaustion.

Kennel owners Jesse and Maleisa Hughes were on vacation in Florida at the time, and had left their daughter and son-in-law, Logan and Austin Flake (who’s the son of U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake), in charge of the dogs.

When the Flakes found the dogs the next morning, they tried to hose them down and ice them, but did not summon emergency help.

“I said from the beginning it doesn’t meet the smell test when you put (so many) dogs in a 9-by-12 room,” Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said at a news conference today, according to CBS5AZ.com.

The pet parents of the dogs who died didn’t buy the chewed wire story, either. (Initially Jesse Hughes had lied to some of them, telling them their dogs ran away from the kennel. “That’s the one mistake we’ve made,” Maleisa Hughes told KTAR last month.)

“How could it be an accident if the people that we hired to do the job left town and left our dogs and family members in the hands of someone else?” David Gillette, whose two Golden Retrievers died at the kennel, asked CBS5AZ.com.

After conducting an extensive investigation — during which the kennel remained open for business — the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) determined that the dogs had not chewed through the wire. The doors to the room in which at least 30 dogs were kept was sealed with duct tape to prevent the stench from entering the rest of the house, according to the MCSO report. The lack of air is likely what killed the dogs.

Today Jesse and Maleisa Hughes were each charged with 22 felony and seven misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty, as well as one felony count of fraudulent schemes and artifices.

Logan and Austin Flake were each charged with 21 felony and seven misdemeanor counts of cruelty to animals.

Last month, several pet parents whose dogs died at Green Acre filed a civil lawsuit against Jesse and Maleisa Hughes. Attorney John Schill told KTAR the pet parents had been assured that Green Acre was a “doggie Disneyland” with a large yard in which to play — when, in fact, all the dogs were kept in the small room.

“My clients want change here. They want accountability,” Schill said. “They don’t want Green Acre to accept dogs in the future. They don’t want it to operate as a boarding facility.”

To raise awareness of animal cruelty and raise funds to help save dogs’ lives, the “Gilbert 23” rescue mission has been created in memory of the dogs killed at Green Acre.

“At least 70 dogs — who weren’t supposed to live through Saturday — were rescued in an effort by ‘Gilbert 23’ families hoping to turn their grief into something positive,” according to a post in late August by the Facebook community The Tragedy at Green Acre Dog Boarding Gilbert, AZ. “The $13,000 raised will be evenly distributed per dog saved to the partnering rescues to assist with their care.”

Today, when a CBS5AZ.com reporter asked Green Acre kennel owner Maleisa Hughes for a comment, she said, “It’s my beautiful daughter’s 15th birthday. Also, her high school volleyball team is undefeated, and they just took out Marcos in two. That’s my statement.”

Nice. Apparently she has no remorse over those 23 beautiful dogs who will never have another birthday.

The next court hearing is scheduled for Oct. 23.

Photo via Facebook

Finally! Animal Abuse Crimes Will Be Tracked by the FBI

Until now, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) didn’t track animal cruelty crimes on statewide or national levels. Extreme cases of animal abuse and neglect were placed in an “Other Offense” category.

But that is finally changing. FBI Director James Comer has approved including these cases in the Uniform Crime Report, thanks to the years-long efforts of the National Sheriffs’ Association, Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and Doris Day Animal League.

The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, created in 1929, is “the starting place for law enforcement executives, students of criminal justice, researchers, members of the media and the public at large seeking information on crime in the nation,” according to the FBI website.

As the FBI has previously done for offenses including hate crimes and the killings of law enforcement officers, it will now also collect critical information on animal cruelty crimes. This means there’s now “a real incentive for law enforcement agencies to pay closer attention to such incidents,” wrote HSUS President Wayne Pacelle on his blog today. “With accurate data, law enforcement agencies will also be better able to allocate officers and financial resources to handle these cases, track trends and deploy accordingly.”

Animal cruelty crimes to be tracked by the FBI include intentional abuse and torture, organized abuse, sexual abuse and simple/gross neglect. The FBI defines animal cruelty as “Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly taking an action that mistreats or kills any animal without just cause, such as torturing, tormenting, mutiliation, maiming, poisoning or abandonment.”

The tracking of these crimes “is a practical way of cracking down on cruelty,” Pacelle wrote.

“The decision is also significant in affirming, at the highest levels of our government, that animal cruelty is a vice just like so many other violent crimes. It is the latest tangible gain in our effort to make opposition to animal cruelty a universal value in our society.”

Photo credit: angela n.

More Than $1 Million Raised Day After Arson Fire Destroys Dog Shelter

As soon as the horrible news broke yesterday that an arson fire had destroyed the Manchester Dogs’ Home in the U.K., killing at least 53 dogs, people began offering their help and making donations to provide for the 150 surviving animals and rebuild the shelter.

As of Friday afternoon, more than $1.6 million had been raised via a donation page set up by the Manchester Evening News. Celebrities including Ricky Gervais and Piers Morgan have been helping to spread the word about the fund.

“£5 here, £10 there, the people of the UK gave what they could and will change our world as a result,” the Manchester Dogs’ Home tweeted earlier today.

A 15-year-old boy has been arrested for setting the fire around 7 p.m. last night. The Mirror reports today that he had recently been hospitalized after being attacked by a dog.

“It Was Soul Destroying”

Colin and Colette Ballance, who live on site at the Manchester Dogs’ Home, managed to save two dogs when the fire broke out.

“By the time we got as many dogs into an outdoor kennel as we could, the smoke was choking,” Colin told the Mirror. “It is anyone’s worst nightmare who works at a dogs’ home — and I have been here for 25 years — but those scenes will live with me forever.”

Anna Stansfield, the shelter’s manager, told the BBC that what she and others saw was “soul destroying.”

The fire affected three areas of the shelter, according to Manchester Dogs’ Home spokeswoman Jane Smith.

“One of the main blocks that was affected was adoption row. This is where dogs go when they are ready to be rehomed,” she told the Mirror. “A family may have been along adoption row on Thursday afternoon and seen the dog for them, and that dog may no longer be with us. It is so, so sad.”

Local Residents Risk Their Lives to Rescue Dogs

The Guardian reports that when local residents became aware of the fire, hundreds of them rushed to the site with dog food and bedding.

Some people even risked their lives trying to rescue the dogs. Jason Dyer and his nephew Dean Rostock managed to save at least 20 dogs from one of the burning buildings.

“[We] managed to get in the reception area,” Dyer told the Mirror. “We grabbed the dog leads, and ran down to try and help the dogs. There were no keys, so we had to pry the cages open, go in and then entice the dogs over to us. The dogs were scared and shaking, and they made their way over to us. We put them on the leads and led them out.”

An online petition requesting that Dyer and Rostock be awarded for their heroic efforts has more than 1,200 signatures as of Friday afternoon.

Help on the Road to Recovery

The Manchester Dogs’ Home, founded in 1893, takes in about 7,000 dogs each year. It finds forever homes for 95 percent of them.

The Manchester Evening News reports that workers from the construction company Powerhouse Property Services have volunteered to rebuild the shelter, free of charge. They’ve set up a Facebook page where other workers can also volunteer their services.

“A million. A million good hearts, a million amazing people thank you thank you thank you,” the shelter tweeted today.

Here’s how you can help:

To make a cash donation, click here.
Post a picture of your dog, alongside your donation, on social media using the hashtag #DogSelfie and/or #ManchesterDogsHome.

Photo via Twitter