United Kingdom: Dog owner filmed appearing to attack pet says he 'did it for animal's own good'

Update: Jason Smart declined to comment in detail although he confirmed his pet had now been taken away by the RSPCA as a result of the footage


UNITED KINGDOM -- A dog owner caught on camera appearing to attack his pet claims to have been doing it to prevent the animal from wandering into nearby traffic.

The footage seemingly shows a man hitting a Staffordshire Pit Bull Terrier known as Frank.

But owner, Jason Smart insisted he had been trying to "protect" the dog who had ‘nearly been run over’ by passing traffic.

When a reporter visited Mr Smart’s home in Rochdale, he declined to comment in detail although he confirmed his pet had now been taken away by the RSPCA as a result of the footage being published on the internet.

He made a swiping motion with his hand and indicated he had only hit the animal once, reports the Manchester Evening News.

An online campaign on Facebook has been launched titled ‘Justice for Frank’ after the security footage was first made public.

The footage shows a man walking up to the tan coloured dog, which is at first not on a lead, and then grab hold of it on Manchester Road in Castleton.

The film then shows the man apparently hitting it at least twice in front of onlookers before attaching a lead and walking off.

Paula O’Connor, who runs the nearby Mane N Tails pet shop, posted the footage on Facebook and it was viewed more than 34,000 times.

A group demanding ‘Justice for Frank’ was also set up and quickly attracted more than 600 members.

The footage was then reported to the RSPCA.

The RSPCA and Greater Manchester Police are now investigating the video.

On Tuesday, Ms O’Connor posted on Facebook: “An RSPCA inspector has rang and said they are going to ring police to see what action they have taken.

“Should be making a visit shortly and will update me on the outcome.”

People also took to social media to express their anger at the incident, which was reported the day before World Animal Day on Tuesday.

Greater Manchester Police confirmed they were called to a report of animal cruelty on Manchester Road, Rochdale, on Monday, October 3.

A GMP spokesman said: “At around 4.55pm on Monday 3 October 2016, police were called to a report of animal cruelty on Manchester Road, Castleton . Police have launched an investigation and enquiries are ongoing.

“The RSPCA have been informed. Anyone with information should contact police on 101 quoting reference number 1610 of 03/10/16 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.”

An RSPCA spokesman said: “We are aware of this and are looking into it.

“Anyone with any information that they think might help our investigation should call the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999.”

(Mirror UK - Oct 6, 2016)