Georgia: James Long, 59, used a zip tie to tighten his dog's shock collar, but didn't notice the "foul odor" coming from the dog's neck or resulting injuries which damaged its vocal cords

GEORGIA -- A Columbia County man faces animal cruelty charges after being accused of using a zip tie to tighten a shock collar around a dog’s neck…causing the dog some serious injuries.

59-year-old James Long is charged with animal cruelty after investigators say he took his dog to Heartsong vet spay and neuter clinic to be neutered last week.

According to an incident report, a worker at the clinic smelled a foul odor coming from the dog and two puncture marks on the dog’s neck that were draining.

Captain Andy Shedd with the Columbia County sheriff’s office says the case against James Long is more about pet owners being aware of the conditions they have for their animals.

“I want to stress that it wasn’t one of those cases where this heinous crime where this guy was targeting dogs that weren’t family pet and that kind of thing,” said Captain Andy Shedd.

“You know checking the collar, checking the collar that was used that kind of thing. You just gotta make sure its not harming the animal,” he added.

Workers at the clinic called deputies, who arrested Long.

“They went by what the vet was telling them. They determined that their were some pretty severe injuries to a dog, it was a terrier mix and based on that we obtained warrants for the suspect and he was subsequently taken into custody.

"We noticed that their were some pretty severe injuries to his neck area, around where his collar was. We determined their was a shock collar involved and also some zip ties that had been involved to try to keep the collar in place and that was the cause of the injuries,” said Captain Andy Shedd.

The dog's vocal cords were damaged as a result.

NewsChannel 6 asked investigators for pictures of the dog’s wounds, but we were told they’re part of the investigation and not being released.

Still– Shedd says the dog is in great condition.

“The dog is doing very well, that the wounds are starting to heal and the animal is basically on its way to try to get back to normal,” said Captain Andy Shedd.

No trial date for long has been set, and the dog is at Columbia county animal services until authorities determine where it will end up.

(WJBF - Dec 29, 2016)