Deputies were called out to the home of Joseph Nicholson Saturday afternoon after a passerby spotted the dogs.
They say Nicholson put the dogs in a dog box when he went out hunting and later found them dead.
He’s been charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty.
For the first time, Nicholson spoke out about what he calls a “freak accident”
"I've been having this box for 8/9 years and I aint never had no problem before,” he said.
Saturday started off like any other day of the hunting season for Joe Nicholson. He loaded his dogs in a dog box and set out for the woods. Little did he know what he’d find a couple hours later.
"I came home unloaded my dogs so i could feed them and opened the gate and all of them were dead,” he said.
Nicholson and his friends say he was only gone for about 3 hours and that there’s no way the dogs could have suffocated.
"That's open right here. Open on both sides and all around there are vents,” said one friend.
"It's like these dogs got into something. Nothing ever happened to any of the dogs and for it to happen to 12 at one time. It's very unusual,” said another.
They’re shocked by the animal cruelty charges.
"Without a shadow of a doubt. I know that joe would never harm the dogs whatsoever,” a friend said.
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| Twelve Beagles were jammed into this box and left until they slowly died, one by one. All 12 dogs died. |
For Nicholson, who has been raising dogs for over a decade, it’s a lesson learned.
[How wonderful! He says it's a learning lesson for him. Apparently he thinks that b/c he admits that it's a learning lesson, he shouldn't be charged with the horrific suffering and deaths of these poor dogs. After all, he's learned his lesson. Don't stuff 12 dogs into a metal box (aka oven) and leave them there!]
Although he still has several dogs, he says the ones he lost are irreplaceable.
" Freak accidents happen to everyone and I ended up with 5 puppies that I can't hunt with this year. A good dog is hard to find. I lost out 12."
Nicholson may never know why the dogs died. He says he can’t afford autopsies for them.
[Sorry to break it to him, but it doesn't matter if he can't afford 'autopsies'. They will do them on the dogs and then they will add that to his bill when he pleads out. Oh and notice that there's no sympathy for the dogs and how they died. He only mentions that it was a 'freak accident' and that he can't hunt this year. Boo hoo!]
A spokesperson for the Pitt County Sheriff’s Office says it’s ultimately up to a judge to determine whether or not there’s probable cause in a case such as this one.
[He may not have put them in their with the INTENT to kill them, but a reasonable person would have known that stuffing 12 dogs in this box, leaving them all day with no water, would result in suffering and possibly death. My verdict? GUILTY.
Many people take good care of their hunting dogs. However, I think a large percentage are like this guy -- the dogs are merely equipment, not pets. If they die, they die. They don't bring them into their house, they don't play with them, they merely exist to contribute to the pleasure the owner derives from hunting with them. Do the hunting dogs in the photos below look 'loved' and 'well cared for'?]
(WNCT - Nov 20, 2011)
