Missouri: Police searching for any information about dog chained to cinderblock and abandoned to drown

MISSOURI -- Park rangers in Missouri managed to rescue an abused dog that was chained to a heavy cinderblock and left to die at a Lake south of Kansas City, according to WDAF.

The Labrador / Shepherd mix was found caked in mud along the shoreline chained to a 12x12" cinderblock "presumably left to drown in high water levels," the Great Plains SPCA said in a statement.

"There is no doubt this was intentional," Animal Control Officer and Great Plains SPCA employee Tonya Hampton said in a statement.

Rangers quickly rescued the animal and he is now recovering at the Great Plains SPCA's Independence shelter.

Officials believe the dog, now named Deputy, is between 5 and 7 years old.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Jackson County Animal Control at (913) 475-6164.

Great Plains SPCA tweeted a photo of Deputy on Monday afternoon.

(WHNT - May 2, 2017)

Maryland: Anthony Muniz, 36, charged with animal cruelty; accused of tying a cinder block to his pit bull and drowning it

MARYLAND -- A man from Reisterstown was held without bail on Monday for allegedly drowning a dog in Liberty Reservoir in February, the Carroll County Times reports.

The dog was found dead in the reservoir, tied to a cinder block with a leash and electric cord around his neck, according to charging documents.

The Times reports 36-year-old Anthony Michael Muniz, from Reisterstown, is being charged with one felony county of animal cruelty, one misdemeanor charge of reckless endangerment, one count of trespassing and six other misdemeanor charges related to animal cruelty or abandonment, according to electronic court records.

On February 28, Humane Society of Carroll County Animal Control officers were called to Liberty Reservoir for a call of a dead dog floating in the water.

The Times reports that it was a male, black and white dog of a bully breed named Gus, which had been adopted from the Humane Society of Carroll County by Muniz, according to the dog’s microchip information, on December 24.

Muniz reportedly brought the dog in on December 13 and said he was a stray. He then came back on December 24 to fill out paperwork for the dog’s adoption.

Charging documents say that a woman called the Humane Society on January 5 to say that the dog was not a stray, but belonged to her and that she was “concerned for the dog’s safety.”

Animal Control and the Baltimore Environmental Police have launched a joint investigation into Muniz.

"We investigated it in cooperation with the Humane Society ... and found that [Muniz] had fled the state and was hiding at a hotel in Gettysburg," Brackett said in an interview. "We requested the assistance of the Carroll County Sheriff's Office to extradite him from out of state."

Muniz was arrested and extradited with the assistance of Pennsylvania authorities, and brought before a judge in Carroll County on Thursday, March 23, according to Baltimore Environmental Police Chief Luke Brackett.

Muniz is being held without bail at the Carroll County Detention Center, according to electronic court files. He has a hearing scheduled for May 26.

(CBS Local - March 28, 2017)

Tennessee: Police say while Krystal Benfield, 31, and James Gibson, 34, sat inside their warm house watching TV, their emaciated dog was tied with a leash to a cinder block in 20 degree weather freezing to death

TENNESSEE -- A Carter County man and woman face animal cruelty charges after police attempting to serve an arrest warrant reported finding a dog in poor conditions at their home.

Officers of the Carter County Sheriff’s Office arrested Nathaniel James Gibson, 34, of 1095 Old Bristol Highway, Elizabethton, on a warrant charging him with violation of probation out of Criminal Court. Officers also issued Gibson a criminal summons charging him with animal cruelty.

Officers also issued Krystal Benfield, 31, of 1095 Old Bristol Highway, Elizabethton, a criminal summons charging her with animal cruelty.

According to reports, CCSO Deputies Eric Norman, Jason Mosier, Brian Smithpeters and Nick Free went to 1095 Old Bristol Highway shortly before 10 a.m. on Wednesday to serve an arrest warrant on Gibson.

“Upon our arrival we observed a medium-sized dog lying on the ground in snow next to the driveway curled up,” Smithpeters said. “The dog looked very malnourished and was shaking from the cold. There was snow on the ground, and the temperature was approximately 20 degrees.”

Smithpeters said the dog was on a leash that was about four-feet long. The leash was attached to a cinderblock and wrapped around a pole, Smithpeters said.

“The nearest shelter for the dog was approximately 15 feet away,” Smithpeters said. “The shelter was sheet metal with no bottom to it or insulation. There was no food or water outside for the dog.”

Officers then spoke with Gibson and Benfield regarding the animal.

“Mrs. Benfield stated she left the residence at 7:45 a.m. and the dog was lying in the same spot as when we found it,” Smithpeters said, noting the weather report was calling for temperatures to drop to around 16 degrees.

Officers requested for Carter County Animal Control to respond to the home. After Animal Control arrived on scene they took custody of the dog, Smithpeters said.

Gibson and Benfield are scheduled to appear in Cater County General Sessions Court on May 9 on the animal cruelty charges.

ARREST INFO:
Full Name: Krystal Renee Benfield
Gender: Female
Height: 5’04”
Weight: 175 lbs
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown
City: Elizabethton, Tennessee 37643
Arrest Age: 31
Date:03/21/2017
Time: 7:29 PM
Arresting Agency: CARTER COUNTYS SHERIFFS DEPT
Charges
#1 SUMMONS CCSD (ANIMAL CRUELTY)

(Elizabethton - March 16, 2017)

John Shultz facing animal cruelty charges for allegedly chaining family dog to cinder block, then tossing her into canal

NEW YORK -- A sadistic Long Island man has been charged with a heinous act of animal cruelty — chaining a cinder block around the family dog’s neck and throwing her into a canal.

John Shultz, 66, was arraigned on felony animal cruelty charges Saturday eight months after the 7-year-old Rottweiler mix was discovered dead in a West Islip canal.

 

 “Just think about this dog that was in the water trying to swim to the surface,” Suffolk County SPCA Chief Roy Gross told the Daily News. “You have that image in your head and it’s just mind-boggling how somebody could do something like that.”

Shultz was arrested at his West Islip home at 6:50 p.m. Friday night. He was released on his own recognizance after appearing in Suffolk County Criminal Court, Gross said.

 

If convicted, Shultz faces up to two years behind in bars. He could not be reached Saturday.

An unidentified neighbor made the gruesome discovery behind a home on Secatogue Lane East on Sept. 18.

The dog, named Sandy, was believed to be in the water for about a week. A necropsy determined that she was alive when she was tossed into the canal, with the cinder block chained around her neck.

“There is no justification for doing this to an animal,” Gross said. “What really hits home is you have somebody who had a family pet and then allegedly does this to it. It’s mind-boggling.”
(NY Daily News - May 16, 2015)

Man charged with animal cruelty after neighbors videotape abuse

UTAH -- It was a sight neighbors couldn't walk away from. And because of them, an Ogden man is facing numerous charges related to animal cruelty.

Ogden police removed five pit bulls from the home of Valentin Zavala. He was charged with multiple counts of animal cruelty and neglect.

 

"They just weren't beating them they were holding them up by ropes and chains by their throats and just pummeling them, kicking them, bouncing things off their heads, their faces,” says Michelle who didn’t want her last name revealed.

One neighbor who didn’t want to be identified actually video taped the beatings using his cell phone. It was a sight that made him angry and turned the video into police.

It appeared that Zavala either didn’t notice neighbors watching or didn’t seem to care because several witnessed the beatings.

"It didn't look like a typical dog swatting a dog for something he did wrong,” says Alora who also didn’t want her last name revealed. “It looked like he was actually meaning to hurt it."

Michelle says the sight made her cry.

“They bashed the puppy's head off that cinder block it was tied to back there,” she says.

In Zavala’s backyard, one could still see the cinder blocks where the dogs were tied. Neighbors say the dogs were on short leases, often tied to the fence or a cinder block.

“The conditions were bad,” says Michelle. “They had no shelter, no food, water. They were on chains less than a foot long.”

Animal control was called in and rescued the five pit bulls. But neighbors claim there were many more pit bulls that just disappeared.

“Then dogs started disappearing or looked really sick and all of a sudden they were gone,” recalled Michelle.

As for Zavala, he's now facing 13-counts including animal cruelty and neglect. A spokesman for the police department says Zavala wasn’t charged with felonies because the injuries to the dogs were not life threatening.

(ABC4 - July 9, 2014)

Pit bull owner released, will not be charged

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO -- THE owner of the pit bull that claimed the life of 82-year-old Lillian Bunsee was released late Monday night as police are seeking to have a coroner’s inquest in the matter.

According to police, the man would not be charged under Section 17 of the Dangerous Dogs Act, which carries a $200,000 fine or imprisonment for ten years. Instead, officers are seeking to have an inquest conducted to ascertain if any liability could be placed on the owner of the dog.

According to neighbours, Bunsee had never ventured close to the dogs as she had been attacked in the past. One of the dogs reportedly escaped from its kennel and again attacked her, this time killing her on Monday morning.

Bunsee died as a result of asphyxiation consistent with strangulation.

Neighbours said shortly after 9 a.m., they saw Bunsee on the ground of her La Seiva Road, Maraval home with the dog tearing away at her body.

The dog was one of approximately ten which were bred and being given aggression training in preparation for sale by two of the woman’s relatives.

 Residents said they tried throwing stones at the animal in an attempt to stop it but their efforts were unsuccessful.

Investigators said several police officers who were on patrol nearby went to the scene after receiving a report and were only able to have the dog stop biting the woman after opening fire on the animal, shooting it six times.

A video, shot and posted by Trini Moments on Facebook, of the incident was shared 858 times by 5.15 p.m. yesterday.  The 30-second video shows the dog ferociously biting the elderly woman.

The dog only moved when a man threw concrete blocks (cinder blocks) at it from atop a nearby roof.

 Trini Moments defended the video, saying that Bunsee had already been killed when they arrived.

The group claimed that Bunsee used to “beat the dog with a stick and tell it shut up”.

Minister of the People Dr Glenn Ramadharsingh, who is also a veterinarian, told the Express in a telephone interview that the mauling is “heart-wrenching”.

“As Minister of the People, I know that the elderly are the vulnerable of the society, they have their own disabilities and capabilities that render them less capable to fend off an attack,” he said, adding that the absence of regulation does not mean that owners should not be responsible.

The Express contacted Jones Animal Clinic yesterday and spoke to one of their veterinarians on duty who wished not to be identified. The vet said that the dogs generally ought not to be blamed.

 The vet said that of all the dogs encountered, the Pompek is the most aggressive.

She agreed that pit bulls should not be trained to be aggressive, mostly because of the power they have and if they become aggressive the combination is lethal.

She warned that a dog with the power of a pit bull should not be trained to be aggressive.

(Trinidad & Tobago Express - Aug 27 2013)

Rhode Island: ‘Like a scene from Cujo’ - pit bull mauls multiple people before being shot to death by police

RHODE ISLAND -- A Fourth of July party turned into a scene of chaos and panic when a pit bull went on a biting rampage that didn’t end until the animal was shot dead by police.

 Five people were taken to Landmark Medical Center with bite wounds, some serious, after the pit bull was killed about 5:30 p.m. Thursday, said police Capt. Glenn G. Lamoureux.

 Two officers fired one shot each into the dog. Lamoureux said the officers had little choice because several people were on the ground bleeding and the dog was still going after people when the officers arrived.

They tried pepper-spraying the animal before shooting it, but the dog showed no signs of giving up.

 “As soon as they got to the scene they realized how chaotic it was,” said Lamoureux. “We’ve had our share of dog bites over the years but nothing ever like this in my recollection.”

 The ordeal took place at 835 Eddie Dowling Highway, where Jennifer Gilmore was holding a combination Fourth of July bash and going-away party for her son, Joey Romeo Bishop, 18. Bishop is a recent graduate of Woonsocket High School and was due to report for active duty in the National Guard next week after a stint in the WHS Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps.

 The dog, Bootsy, was an adult male pit bull left in her care by a neighbor who was away, said Gilmore. The dog was supposed to be confined to a sun room during the party, but someone apparently let it out.

 The trigger for the dog’s temper tantrum was apparently some “horseplay” between her son and his friend, Phillip Alobwede, 18. The two teens were shoving each other when the dog went after Alobwede.

 The dog went “straight for Phil and he was basically ripping up his leg,” said Bishop.

 The victims were injured over the course of what were actually three separate attacks, he said. Bishop said he and others managed to subdue the dog and get it in the house following the initial attack.

 They thought the dog was safely confined to the house, but it jumped out of an open window and resumed attacking him and others who had gathered at the party.

 The dog was captured a second time and returned to the house, but before anyone figure out how he had escaped the first time, the dog jumped out the window again and started biting people.

 “It was crazy,” said Bishop. “It was like a scene from the movie ‘Cujo.’”

 Before it was over, five people were bitten seriously enough to be transported to the hospital. In addition to himself and Alobwede, Bishop said his teenage girlfriend and two adults in their 30s were also wounded.

 Bishop said he suffered at least seven bite wounds and numerous punctures on his knee, torso and crotch. At one point Bishop remarked that he had come “within a centimeter of being neutered.”

Bishop said doctors closed some of the most serious wounds with stitches.

 During the attack, Bishop said his mother tried whacking the dog on the head several times with a massive cinderblock. Others tried striking it with a piece of timber and kicking it, but the dog just kept attacking.

 When the police turned their firearms on the animal, said Bishop, his only reaction was a sense of relief.

 “They really had no choice but to shoot this dog,” said Bishop. “We all backed away when it happened so they could take care of it.”

 Bishop said he was more worried than frightened during the episode. While pit bulls are noted for their strength and powerful jaws, Bishop said what surprised him most was the dog’s unbridled determination to go after people and bite them, despite all the efforts of the humans to discourage him.

 “This is a dog that escaped three times and kept coming,” he said. “The fact that he kept coming straight for me was kind of a worry.

 Bishop said he was supposed to report to Fort Benning, Ga. for basic training early next week, but he’s fairly certain that will be put off until he’s well-healed.

 Ironically, the attack comes just a day after the General Assembly approved a bill prohibiting cities and towns from enacting “breed specific” legislation to ban pit bulls or any other dogs. The law has no impact in North Smithfield, where no such ordinance is on the books, but it will force Pawtucket and Central Fall to stop enforcing longtime bans on pit bulls.

 Woonsocket has twice considered enacting such a ban, but has tabled the proposal, citing the costs and difficulty in enforcing the measure.

 The pit bull isn’t the first poster-dog for bad canine behavior, but it’s not the dog that’s to blame, state lawmakers [insist] – it’s the people who raise them, often with the intent of encouraging aggressive behavior.

“Years ago it was German Shepherds that were ‘bad’ dogs,” the lead sponsor of the bill, State Rep. Thomas Palangio (D-Dist. 3, Providence), said in a statement. “Then it was Dobermans, then Rottweilers and today it is Pit Bulls. No specific breed of dog is intrinsically bad or vicious or dangerous.”

[Same old mantra spewed... "first it was the Dobermans, then Rottweilers...". I'm surprised Thomas Palangio didn't say that we're picking on "nanny dogs".]

Bishop and his mother said they were very familiar with Bootsy and had never known the animal to behave in a vicious manner until Thursday. The dog barked at passersby from the driveway, but had never tried to bite anyone before, they said.

(Woonsocket Call - July 5, 2013)

Related:

• Dog attacks people, put down by police