AUSTRALIA -- Horrified dog owners have watched on as their tiny pug was mauled by another dog before being crushed by a truck.
The 12-month-old pug Lola was being taken for a walk on Sunday night in Carlisle, in Perth's inner-east, when a white Pit Bull jumped out of a vehicle stopped at the lights.
Lola's owners claim the dog - described as either a pit bull or Staffordshire Pit Bull Terrier - launched a savage attack on the helpless pug before being whisked away by its owner.
'The Pit Bull latched on to Lola's neck and was lifting her up and ripping her apart,' Lola's owner Ellie McKay told 9 News.
Ms McKay and her fiancee Simon Warman pulled the larger dog away from Lola who was badly injured.
But in her distressed state, Lola ran away from her owners and directly into the path of an oncoming truck.
Mr Warman said he ran after her, only to watch her collide with a moving truck.
"I just collapsed near her body," he said.
"I don't think we will ever get over watching her die," Ms McKay added.
"It was the worst experience of my entire life."
CCTV from a nearby liquor store shows the driver of the white vehicle chasing after his dog after the attack.
Ms McKay said the man gathered his dog and left the pair there screaming in despair.
"He just shrugged and said ‘sorry about that’ and put the dog back in his car," Ms McKay said.
"He just drove off and left us there screaming."
The couple are pleading for the public's help to find the owner who is described as fair skinned, in his late 50s with grey hair and stubble, according to 9 News.
MICHIGAN -- An injured dog spent the night out in the bitter cold, but he's been given a second chance after an animal rescue group found him.
The dog has been through a lot. They believe he was hit by a car, then frozen to the ground, yet somehow he survived.
They are trying to find out where he belongs.
"This is not a stray dog. This is somebody's loved pet," said Bill Heatley, founder of Streethearts Animal Rescue.
"He has a fractured femur. His leg bone is broken very high up, and I can't fix it. He would need anesthesia to have more X-rays done to completely determine whether anything else is broken," said Dr. Lawrence Ehrman with Veterinary Medical Hospital.
His ordeal began on New Year's Eve, when a witness says he was hit by a car in a Flint neighborhood.
"She heard the impact, looked out, heard the dog cry, looked out, ran to her backyard. As soon as he entered her backyard, he went and laid down at the back of the yard and didn't move for over 24 hours," Heatley said.
She called 911. The dispatcher called Heatley, who found the dog badly injured but still alive.
"When I got to the point where I meant to move him, I had wrapped him. And I went to lift the blanket and it wouldn't move," Heatley said. "I actually had to peel him off the ice."
Once he was safely removed from the ice, the dog was rushed to a veterinary hospital.
"The first consideration with this dog was organ damage or failure, and thankfully the veterinarians both say because of his very thick heavy coat, that probably saved him," Heatley said.
"We've just been taking care of him, giving him pain medication, let him relax making sure he eats and awaiting decisions on what goes on from here," Ehrman said.
As the dog they named Feliz continues to recover, Heatley is hoping his owner comes forward or they find him a new home.
In the meantime, they will continue to try to save other animals from suffering a worse fate than Feliz.
"The sad thing ... is that's one dog that we found," Heatley said. "There are a multitude of dog out here in the city of Flint and cats, they're not being found, that we don't know about."
They are hoping the owner comes forward, and they also have set up a Youcaring page to help with Feliz's medical bills, which are expected to run into the thousands.
On the Youcaring page, the rescue group saidFeliz is expected undergo surgery on Thursday to try to save his leg.
WASHINGTON -- An owl was rescued Thursday by a Marysville police officer after the bird was struck by a car.
Marysville police said the owl was taken to Sarvey Wildlife to recover.
“Meet our newest cadet, Owl Pacino,” the department said over Twitter. “An officer found him after he was hit by a car & took for a glide along. Wishing him a speedy recovery @SarveyWildlife & we hope he uses a crosswalk nest time.”
LOUISIANA -- [From January] Two dogs were fighting for their lives in intensive veterinary care Tuesday after a wild chase involving Gretna police officers Monday afternoon ended with a burglary suspect running over the dogs in Coliseum Square in the Lower Garden District.
Jojo, a 17-year-old mixed breed, and Breezy, an 8-year-old border collie named after Saints quarterback Drew Brees, both suffered serious injuries, said Anne Bell, director of the Southern Animal Foundation.
Fleeing from police, Barthe crashed into Coliseum Square, where two employees of the animal foundation were walking Jo-Jo and Breezy, Bell said.
“They were able to dive for the bushes, but they couldn’t get the dogs out of the way,” she said.
Jojo’s hip was dislocated. Breezy suffered several broken bones. “You can see track marks on the abdomen,” Bell said.
But it wasn’t just dogs whose lives were at risk. Bell said parents were grabbing students out of the way as the youngsters were leaving the nearby International School of Louisiana.
ARREST INFO:
Full Name: Brandon Barthe
Gender: Male
Race: White
Birthdate: 12/07/1994
Arrest Age: 22
Arrest Date: 09/18/2017
Arrest Time: 11:59 AM
Arrest Location: Orleans Parish, Louisiana
Charges
#1 AGG CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
#2 RECKLESS OPERATION OF A VEHICLE
CALIFORNIA -- A bobcat found with an injured leg by the side of the road near Martinez was rescued by the California Highway Patrol and taken to a wildlife hospital in Walnut Creek for treatment, according to CHP.
A passerby called the Highway Patrol shortly before 1:30 p.m. to report that an animal was injured on the side of the road along Cummings Skyway just east of Crockett Boulevard, in Crocket Hills Regional Park, CHP reported in a statement.
"Upon our arrival, the wildlife we found was a beautiful Bobcat that had injured its leg," the statement said. "Thankfully along with the help of Contra Costa Animal Services we were able to rescue this little fella and transport him to the Lindsay Wildlife Experience museum in Walnut Creek, where he will be cared for. Get well little guy!"
At the Lindsay Wildlife Experience, the big cat was receiving X-rays and medical treatment, according to Elisabeth Nardi, a spokeswoman for the hospital.
"We get maybe one a year — it's not too common," Nardi said. "Our main species are things like Virginia opossums, house finches, squirrels, all kinds of barn owls."
The bobcat is a lot bigger than those animals, obviously, so the Wildlife Experience can only house him or her for the short term, she said.
"We do not have a big enough facility to be able to house him or her for any long period of time," Nardi said, "so if he's doing OK, we will transport him to a partner organization that has a bigger facility."
NEW YORK -- A Buffalo woman is facing animal cruelty charges after postponing treatment for her dog who was hit by a car earlier in the week.
The SPCA serving Erie County received a report that "Sunny", a young Chihuahua belonging to Joann Ponzo of Warren Avenue, had been hit by a vehicle and was unable to use his back legs.
The report claimed the dog was not receiving veterinary treatment for his injuries.
Following up on the report cruelty investigator Chelsa Wlodarczyk brought "Sunny" to the SPCA on Harlem Road where X-rays showed he had a broken pelvis.
The dog remains at the SPCA but was not surrendered to the organization.
Ponzo will be appearing in Buffalo City Court on Thursday, September 14th.
COLORADO -- A golden eagle is safe after she was rescued by a Colorado Parks and Wildlife official following a car wreck on US 24 in Teller County.
An official said a juvenile eagle – later identified as a female golden eagle – was resting in a kennel after she was rescued from a car wreck along US 24 in “driving rain.”
Ben Meier, the CPW officer who rescued the eagle, “suspected it was involved in the wreck,” but did not say exactly how.
The eagle was rescued on US 24 west of Divide, the official said.
ALASKA -- A 49-year-old North Pole woman charged with causing severe physical pain and suffering to her pregnant and injured dog two years ago was sentenced Thursday to one year of suspended time and one year of probation.
The woman’s probation conditions also stipulate she not be allowed to own any animals or be around them without supervision.
According to charging documents, April Arlene Gutierrez was charged with animal cruelty for failing to care for her 2-year-old dachshund, Shebba, after the dog was hit by a car June 28, 2015.
Shebba’s left hind leg and right front leg were broken but Gutierrez let the dog suffer for a month until she started to chew her left hind foot off.
Gutierrez and a friend took Shebba to Loving Companions Animal Rescue and staff there sent them to the Animal House Veterinary Clinic after they unwrapped Shebba’s foot and found it crawling with maggots.
Animal House staff discovered the bones and tendons of Shebba’s left rear foot were exposed, the flesh gangrenous and the foot was dangling and barely attached. The leg had to be amputated.
Shebba’s genital region was infested with maggots and a radiographic exam showed her puppies had been dead inside of her for about 48 hours, according to the complaint.
Dr. Deeanna Thornell, owner of the clinic, called Fairbanks North Star Borough Animal Control to report Shebba’s condition, and they in turn reported it to Alaska State Troopers.
Gutierrez had recently been evicted and troopers were unable to locate her until Dec. 16, 2015. She CLAIMED she didn’t take Shebba to the veterinarian because she couldn’t afford it but that the dog was fine, according to the charges.
A lighter sentence than hoped
Senate Bill 91, which was passed by the state Legislature in April 2016 as a way to reduce prison populations and recidivism rates by decreasing the penalties for a variety of crimes, prevented prosecutors from seeking a harsher sentence, Assistant District Attorney Allison Baldock said in an email Thursday.
“Generally under SB91, a court is not allowed to order either active or suspended incarceration in excess of 30 days for this class of offense. However, as part of her plea, the Defendant also stipulated to 'the most serious' aggravating factor. Because of that stipulation, the court was allowed to impose the maximum possible period of suspended incarceration.
“What the defendant did in this case was not only cruel, it was heartless. Her treatment of the 2-year-old dachshund, Shebba, a sentient being who feels pain and experiences trauma, was sickening.
While the state would have liked to secure a sentence involving a period of actual incarceration for her conduct, that was thought to be very unlikely given that under SB91, even if she would have been charged with felony level animal cruelty, a court could not impose anything but suspended time for the typical offender.
“The State does, and will continue to, take animal abuse cases very seriously,” Baldock said.
Adjusting to a new life
Shebba was treated for her injuries and fostered for several months while she received rehabilitation and socialization training with the Animal Hospital’s trainer. The Douge family adopted her Dec. 22, 2015, and Shebba, renamed Lucy, is safe and happy in her forever home.
“They brought her out, and for me, it was love at first sight,” mom Heather Douge said, explaining that Lucy is “gorgeous” and looks very similar to her childhood dog, Pepper. “I said I’ll take her. She’s a good little girl and part of the family now.”
Douge said Lucy “does as good as she can and is happy with what she can do,” but definitely struggles physically.
“Missing that back leg hinders her getting over things,” Douge said. “She’s a dachshund mix and has short little legs anyway, but then you add missing a leg and being able to lift her one back leg over a shoe or something becomes very challenging.”
Lucy is able to run and is “quite quick for a three-legged little dog,” but can only run in short sprints. Long walks are hard for her so Douge sometimes carries her in a front-worn baby carrier.
Lucy is extremely nervous around cars and also needs to be the only dog in the family, but “knowing her trauma and her story, it explains how she responds to things,” Douge said.
Lucy gets along well with Douge’s children and husband, who are “very compassionate and loving toward her,” but her heart belongs to Douge. “I’m her person. When I come home, she makes a beeline to me and she has to greet me. She just howls and howls. She follows me around and sleeps in our bed, spooned up against our backs. I feel like she is in such the right place now.”
April Gutierrez, 46, of Fairbanks, was charged with misdemeanor assault for allegedly punching a UPS delivery driver Feb. 9. The charge was filed Wednesday.
The victim told Alaska State Troopers that Gutierrez walked up to his truck on Persinger Drive and confronted him about a previous incident in which he hit Gutierrez’s son with his truck.
The driver was found to not be at fault in that incident, troopers said.
The victim told troopers Gutierrez climbed into his truck, yelled at him and punched him in the face. He said it gave him a headache and pain to his lower jaw once the adrenaline wore off.
MICHIGAN -- A former Monroe County dog breeder was placed on probation and ordered to pay more than $2,500 in restitution for abandoning 15 Siberian Huskies in January.
Lenawee County Circuit Court Judge Margaret Noe also ordered today that Deborah L. Hosler, 47, of Petersburg, complete 200 hours of community service and banned her from owning, possessing, or caring for any animals during her five years of probation.
Debbie Hosler pleaded guilty May 3 to abandonment of animals, a felony punishable by up to four years in prison.
But like 99.9% of animal cruelty cases, they never get the maximum that we're always told. So even though Hosler was facing "up to four years in prison" she got five years probation. She didn't even get any jail time. Boo.
According to the Toledo Blade, Hosler told the court she was unable to care for the dogs any longer and, not wanting to see them taken and euthanized, loaded them up into her vehicle and drove out to Lenawee County, Michigan, where she threw them all out of her vehicle and drove off, abandoning them to die.
Because there were so many, and they were large dogs, she likely had to make several trips back and forth from her house to the dumping site -- which would have given her plenty of time to think about what she had done to these poor dogs and stop. She could have gone back and caught the dogs she'd dumped in the first trip and brought them back home and then contacted the shelter or Husky breeders/rescues for help. But she didn't.
Now she claims she's "taking responsibility" but she's not. She is only admitting to what we already knew -- SHE ABANDONED THESE DOGS TO DIE.
The dogs began appearing in the Adrian area alone and in small groups Jan. 4, primarily in the area of Academy Road east of Adrian. The animal control division of the sheriff’s department began investigating and news of the huskies spread rapidly on social media.
PRIOR PROBLEMS WITH DEBORAH HOSLER
In 2006, Hosler was ticketed for owning an unlicensed dog, a violation she neglected to take care of until a Monroe County bench warrant was issued in 2008.
Five years later, Hosler’s name came up again at Monroe County Animal Control, when an anonymous tip led investigators to find more than 20 dogs kept in unsanitary outdoor kennels.
“The outside kennels were emitting a strong odor, and it was visible that the kennels had not been cleaned for a while,” a Monroe County Animal Control report detailed.
In March 2016, one of Hosler’s mastiffs escaped her facility and ran free for months before a dedicated shelter worker was able to catch him. But Hosler refused to take the dog back, and it was later adopted out of the Devoted Barn rescue in Frenchtown Township.
In June 2016, four of Ms. Hosler’s Huskies got loose and attacked chickens owned by Summerfield Township Clerk Trudy Goodin, killing five of the birds and injuring two. It was this incident that brought Ms. Hosler’s illegal operation to the township’s attention, resulting in the revocation of her Monroe County kennel license. She is facing four misdemeanor charges of dogs running loose for that incident, and could face additional charges of unlicensed dogs, Sergeant Berman said.
One of the dogs involved in the attack on chickens was noted as being thin with ribs and spine showing. A follow-up inspection at Ms. Hosler’s kennel in July showed the dogs to be in decent shape overall, though some had diarrhea and there was old feces in some of the kennels.
Ms. Hosler reportedly told the officer she was going to sell all but five of her dogs and move out of Monroe County.
The department also has a dog bite report from August, 2016, showing one of Ms. Hosler’s huskies bit her on the arm as she was trying to break up a fight between dogs.
The final activity, for which Sergeant Berman said Ms. Hosler could face an additional misdemeanor charge in Monroe County, is related to the sale of a husky puppy after the revocation of her kennel license.
Ryan Evola filed a complaint with the department in September about the condition of Ms. Hosler’s facility, and said the puppy he purchased earlier that month for $850 was sick.
Mr. Evola’s letter to the county alleged unsanitary conditions inside Ms. Hosler’s home, including a strong urine smell and feces. He said his puppy was treated for roundworms, fleas, coccidia, lice, and giardia.
A visit by an animal control officer found three huskies and a mastiff inside the home, and all were healthy. The report did not indicate any other dogs were on the property, but noted Ms. Hosler told the officer she had given the huskies away.
Who is this animal control officer? Did s/he go back to the kennels? Did s/he hear any barking? Why would they "not indicate any other dogs were on the property" unless s/he only went to the front door and were shown her personal dogs and then simply drove away. This officer needs to be investigated.
None of the 15 dogs Hosler abandoned earlier this year were licensed in Monroe County. Under the recommendations of the felony sentencing, the former breeder has forfeited the 15 huskies, as well as her own dogs, five huskies and a mastiff.
She was arrested after the dogs were found running loose in the area of Academy Road and North Wilmoth Highway east of Adrian.
She admitted to law enforcement that she dumped the animals Jan. 4 because she could no longer afford to care for the dogs and was afraid they would be seized and destroyed.
Yet she had no concern of people's livestock or pets which might be attacked and/or killed by them because the dogs were starving. She had no concern for the neighbors living in the area where she dumped these dogs that little children - long a target for Huskies due to their high prey drive - might be attacked, especially if the dogs were starving. She had no concern for the dogs which could starve to death, or be hit and killed by cars - or worse, hit and thrown into a ditch with a broken back to suffer for days before finally dying. She had no concern that these dogs, if they survived, could be shot by people thinking they were coyotes, wolves or simply because they were roaming around.
She wasn't "afraid" they would be euthanized. Purebred dogs, as long as they don't have serious behavior problems, will get shipped off to breed-specific rescues. The TRUTH is that it was her EGO that resulted her in doing this. She didn't want to have to explain to people why her business failed. She didn't want other Husky breeders to know. It may also be that was selfish, too, and didn't want anyone to get her "property". But no, she had no compassion or concern for these dogs or she never would have done such a horrible thing.
“I am truly sorry about the mistake in judgment that I made,” Hosler said in Lenawee County Circuit Court on May 31, before being rebuked by Judge Margaret Noe.
“There is absolutely nothing that can be said to justify what you did and the manner in which you did it,” Judge Noe told Hosler.
With the exception of a male that was struck by a car and killed, the dogs were either adopted or placed in rescues.
Hosler had operated a breeding kennel called Hosler Huskies (also known as Hosler’s Husky Haven) from her Monroe County home.
Why wasn't her husband, Mark Hosler, arrested as well? There's no way he didn't know the conditions in the kennels were, for years, bad. There's no way he didn't know she was selling sick puppies because she wasn't bothering to clean the kennels or take the animals to the vet. For YEARS, he benefited financially from the suffering of these animals.
Aug 29, 2011
Facing charges
Mark A. Hosler, 49, 3943 Anders Rd., Petersburg, retail fraud-third degree, disorderly person-disturbing the peace, driving with suspended license. Pretrial conference Sept. 26, 2011.
ARIZONA -- Police have arrested a Phoenix man who allegedly used a sledgehammer to kill a dog that had been hit by a car.
Ivan Lawrence (Erick Lawrence), 49, was booked on one count of felony animal abuse under §ARS 13-2910 and a violation of city code for failing to render aid.
This goes back to 9 p.m. Saturday. The dog was hit by one -- possibly two vehicles -- in the area of 37th and Oak streets.
"A few people, including children, were gathered around the injured animal when the suspect, 49 year old [sic] Ivan Lawrence, retrieved a sledgehammer from his home nearby and struck the dog twice in the head, killing it," explained Sgt. Vince Lewis of the Phoenix Police Department.
It's not clear if the dog, Beau, might have survived being hit had she been taken to a veterinarian.
"The dog appeared to have an injured front leg and was weight bearing on 3 [sic] legs and was able to move with the assistance of the other dog that was standing nearby in a protective capacity," according to court paperwork.
"The injured dog was panting and appeared to need medical treatment. The witnesses planned to take the dog to a 24 hour [sic] medical clinic after they established that the owner was not home at the time of the incident."
Lawrence's court paperwork notes that there are "a number" of 24-hour animals hospitals relatively close to where the dog was hit.
A woman came from down the street and said "she would get her husband because he would know what to do."
Lawrence showed up, sledgehammer in hand, a few minutes later. By that time, Beau was lying by the front door of its owner's home.
"Witnesses reported that Ivan proceeded to say he was going to kill the dog with the sledgehammer," the arresting officers wrote in his probable cause for arrest statement. "One witness attempted to verbally dissuade Ivan from killing the dog for approximately 10 minutes to no avail. The witness reported that Ivan was swinging the hammer in an aggressive manner and said he had a gun.
"The witness reported that she told Ivan that she and her mother were going to take the dog to the veterinarian nearby but Ivan said he was going to kill the dog and put it out of its misery," the probable cause statement continues.
"By this time two children were standing nearby from the neighborhood pleading with Ivan to refrain from hitting the dog with a sledgehammer."
The witness told police she was intimidated by Lawrence, enough so that she backed away. That, according to the witness is when Lawrence approached the injured dog.
"The witness [said] the dog was not whining or yelping prior to being struck in the head but the dog yelped loudly when the suspect swung and hit the dog in the head the first time," reads the court paperwork. "The witness reported that the suspect then swung the hammer a second time and hit the dog in the head."
Another witness called the police and officers documented the incident.
"This information was seen by Phoenix Police Animal Cruelty detectives later that week who responded and recontacted the dog owner and suspect," Lewis said.
According to Jessica Headley, who posted about the incident on a public Facebook group called Arizona Animal Rescue Alliance, the owners of the dog, including six children, got home about 10 minutes later to find their pet dead in the doorway of their home.
"She didn't have to die the way she did," Headley wrote in her post, which she has updated several times since the incident. "I begged and begged and pleaded for him to not go on property and do it. ... I couldn't stop him."
"[The owners] were devastated to learn that their pet Beau had been killed in this manner as they would have preferred their pet had been treated at an animal hospital as the witnesses were trying to do," the arresting officer wrote.
Lewis said investigators established probable cause to arrest Lawrence on Wednesday, including being positively identified in a photo lineup by a 10-year-old who witnessed the incident.
"The child reportedly has had crying episodes and nightmares as a result of the incident," according to Lawrence's court paperwork.
When detectives talked to Lawrence about what happened that night, "he confirmed that he euthanized the dog as a mercy killing."
"The suspect admitted he was reckless in killing the dog in this manner and with children present to witness it," reads the arresting officer's report.
Although he claimed to be doing what was "needed" for Beau "to put the dog out of his misery," he told police it's not something he would want somebody to do to his dog.
"The suspect agreed that any reasonable person would have an issue if they saw what he did," court paperwork reads. "The suspect admitted that if his dog were hit by a car he would object to someone doing what he did to his own pet.
During his initial court appearance Thursday, Lawrence only had one question for Commissioner Paula Williams, who set a secured appearance bond of $2,000. One condition of his release is that he not "have contact with any animals under any circumstances." He wanted to know about the time frame for that because he has pets.
Under Arizona law, Lawrence, who served with the National Guard for a time, could face a minimum of three months in jail and a maximum of 18 if convicted of a class 6 felony and 6 months to two years if convicted of a class 5 felony.
ARREST INFO:
Full Name: Ivan Erick Lawrence
Gender: Male
Height: 5'09"
Weight: 170 lbs
Hair Color: BROWN
Eye Color: GREEN
Arrest Date: 04/19/2017
Arrest Agency: Maricopa County, Arizona
Charges
#1 ANIMAL-INTENTL CRUEL MISTREAT
#2 ANIMAL-INTENTL CRUEL MISTREAT
DETAILS FROM THE ARREST REPORT:
ACCORDING TO THE WITNESS THE CHILDREN WERE SCREAMING AND YELLING AT THE SUSPECT TO STOP. THE WITNESSES REPORTED THAT ATTEMPTS WERE MADE TO DISSUADE THE SUSPECT FROM HITTING THE DOG IN THE HEAD FOR A PERIOD OF TIME THAT LASTED BETWEEN 8-12 MINUTES BUT THE SUSPECTS WIFE/GIRLFRIEND REPEATEDLY EGGED AND ENCOURAGED THE SUSPECT DO IT.
IT WAS TOWARD THE END OF THE DISPUTE THAT THE SUSPECT MENTIONED HE HAD A GUN AND SWUNG THE SLEDGEHAMMER IN A WAY THAT CAUSED THE WITNESS TO STEP OUT OF THE WAY DUE TO HER FELLING INTIMIDATED AND THE SUSPECT PROCEEDED TO APPROACH THE DOG WHICH WAS LYING BY HIS OWNERS FRONT DOOR AND SWUNG AND HIT THE DOG IN THE HEAD.
ACCORDING TO THE WITNESS THE DOG WAS NOT WHINING OR YELPING PRIOR TO BEING STRUCK IN THE HEAD BUT THE DOG YELPED LOUDLY WHEN THE SUSPECT SWUNG AND HIT THE DOG IN THE HEAD THE FIRST TIME.
THE WITNESS REPORTED THAT THE SUSPECT THEN SWUNG THE HAMMER A SECOND TIME AND HIT THE DOG IN THE HEAD. AFTER THE DOG WAS HIT THE SECOND TIME THE WITNESS REPORTED THAT THE DOGS BODY WAS MOVED FROM THE STRIKE AND THE HEAD WAS CANTED IN AN ABNORMAL POSITION.
THE WITNESS REPORTED THAT THE DOG WAS NOT BLEEDING IN A NOTICEABLE MANNER PRIOR TO BEING HIT BY THE SUSPECT BUT A LARGE QUANTITY OF BLOOD CAME OUT OF THE DOGS HEAD AFTER HE WAS HIT BY THE SUSPECT.
ANOTHER WITNESS HAD CALLED THE POLICE DURING THE INTERIM AND REPORTED THAT NUMEROUS EFFORTS WERE MADE TO STOP THE SUSPECT FROM KILLING THE INJURED DOG WITH A SLEDGEHAMMER. THE DOG OWNERS ARRIVED HOME A SHORT TIME LATER TO DISCOVER THEIR FAMILY PET WAS LYING IN THE ENTRYWAY IN A POOL OF BLOOD DECEASED.
THE SUSPECT DOES NOT HAVE ANY MEDICAL TRAINING PERTAINING TO ANIMALS AND ADMITTED THAT IT WAS POSSIBLE HE COULD HIT THE DOG AND IT NOT DIE AFTER THE FIRST HIT, HOWEVER THE SUSPECT CLAIMED THAT HE WAS IN THE NATIONAL GUARD AND AN EX ATHLETE WHICH WOULD ALLOW HIM TO KNOW THAT THE DOG NEEDED TO BE KILLED.
THE SUSPECT SAID AFTER HE KILLED THE DOG HE WENT HOME AND DID NOT CALL THE POLICE OR WAIT TO SPEAK WITH THE FAMILY WHO OWNED THE DOG. THE DOG OWNERS ARRIVED HOME WITH THEIR SIX CHILDREN TO DISCOVER THEIR PET WAS DECEASED.
ARIZONA -- Police say a Phoenix man went too far after he claimed he was trying to end a dog's suffering after it was hit by a car.
At least one witness told police that Ivan Lawrence, 49, got a sledgehammer and beat a neighbor's dog twice in the head in front of multiple people, including children, after they tried to persuade him not to, according to the Phoenix Police Department.
Lawrence is facing charges of felony animal abuse and failing to render aid. He was being held Thursday in a Maricopa County jail in lieu of a $2,000 bond.
He told police that killing the dog was a mercy because it was obviously in pain.
Family dog strayed from property
The owners of the dog, a 3-year-old pit bill named Beau, were not home when Beau and another family dog strayed from their property near 37th and Oak streets on Sunday. Only Beau had been hit by a car and appeared to be struck by a second vehicle by the time he exited the roadway, limping.
Beau's owner, Kym Jesus-Garcia, said she was told that the family's other dog helped Beau to the front porch.
Neighbors gathered, and at least one witness told police that they were planning to take the injured animal to a 24-hour medical clinic. Jesus-Garcia said neighbors needed help getting the heavy dog into a vehicle, so a neighbor went inside her home to retrieve her husband, suggesting he could help.
It was then that Lawrence came out of his house with a 3-foot-long sledgehammer, according to police.
Jesus-Garcia said five to six people claimed to have been in the front yard during the incident. Police said witnesses argued with Lawrence for about 10 minutes to try and dissuade him from killing the dog, according to court documents. Witnesses reported that the dog was not whining and there wasn't much blood, records show.
"She wasn't dead," Jesus Garcia said. "She probably (had) some internal injuries because she wasn't even bleeding. She wasn't bleeding at all."
Lawrence told police he was in the National Guard and an ex-athlete, which let him know that the dog needed to be killed, according to the court document.
Police say he eventually made an intimidating motion with the hammer, and witnesses stepped out of the way. He struck the dog in the head once and it yelped, records show. He then struck it again.
"It was disturbing because the kids were there," Phoenix police Sgt. Vince Lewis said. "He was swinging the hammer, and at one point threatened to use a gun."
Lawrence was identified in a police lineup by a 10-year-old who witnessed the dog's death, according to court documents. Records also say the child has had "crying episodes and nightmares" since.
'Justice for Beau'
Jesus-Garcia said the family returned home to find their beloved dog lying in front of their house in a pool of blood. She added that the family is pressing charges against Lawrence due to the manner and treatment of the dog's death.
"I feel some relief knowing something's going to happen," Jesus-Garcia said. "Justice for Beau."
Lawrence told police that he was simply putting the dog out of its misery; however, he conceded that it was a "reckless manner" and he wouldn't want someone doing that if it happened to his own pet, according to documents.
Lewis said the dog walked off the road but was still in pain. He wasn’t sure if the dog would have survived if she hadn’t been hit with the sledgehammer. Phoenix Police Animal Cruelty detectives received information after Beau had been buried and wasn't able to examine her.
What to do with injured animals
The Arizona Humane Society said in an email that people who find injured or stray animals can call the Humane Society's field dispatch team at 602-997-7585 Ext. 2073, and the dispatchers will send out emergency animal medical technicians to the scene.
If it's after-hours, people can take animals into 24-7 emergency clinics throughout the Phoenix area. The Humane Society picks up animals each day from such clinics and takes them to their own "animal trauma hospital."
A Humane Society spokeswoman said taking one of these routes can reunite an injured animal with its owner, or put a stray onto the adoption floor when healed and potentially find it a home.
"We were absolutely heartbroken to hear about this story," said Bretta Nelson, a Humane Society spokeswoman. "Our hearts go out to the family who lost their best friend in such a horrific manner."
ARREST INFO:
Full Name: Ivan Erick Lawrence
Gender: Male
Height: 5'09"
Weight: 170 lbs
Hair Color: BROWN
Eye Color: GREEN
Arrest Date: 04/19/2017
Arrest Agency: Maricopa County, Arizona
Charges
#1 ANIMAL-INTENTL CRUEL MISTREAT
#2 ANIMAL-INTENTL CRUEL MISTREAT
SWEDEN -- An image showing a memorial for a dog killed in central Stockholm when a lorry rammed into people has drawn attention online after it was posted on Facebook.
Four people - a British national, two Swedes and one Belgian - were killed in the Islamic terrorist attack on Friday.
Markus Krantz, 37, and his girlfriend who live just north of the capital went to the scene of the attack after it was re-opened to the public, and noticed that nothing was there to recognise the death of the dog called Iggy.
When it came to light that Iggy was a rescue dog, Markus returned to the scene and left the dog flowers and a message on their behalf.
The original image posted by Markus on Saturday from the scene of Iggy's death - which has over 48,000 reactions - shows dog crackers, candles and a leash that belonged to his dog Ebba who died in 2016.
Markus told the BBC that he and his girlfriend heard that a dog had been killed but were unable to find anything where Iggy last walked that specifically recognised the dog.
"We decided to put down flowers and dog crackers, and light a candle," he said.
"My mom asked me to take a picture and send it to her and since it went online, the response has been 100 per cent positive. Just pure love," Markus continued.
Following this, Markus discovered that Iggy was a rescue dog from Dogs Aid Animal Sanctuary in Dublin. Markus currently has five dogs, all rescued from Romania.
Dogs Aid asked Markus to return to the site and leave a message on their behalf: "Iggy Run Free, from all ur friends in Dogs Aid in Dublin."
On Facebook, the sanctuary said: "We are deeply saddened to learn that one of our dogs was killed in the terrorist attack in Stockholm. DOGS AID IGGY found his beautiful home in Sweden in 2012."
More people have paid a visit to the memorial site. Pictures online show a stuffed dog, a child's drawing of a dog, crackers, a rubber dog bone toy, candles and flowers.
And Facebook users sent their love to Iggy, with one sharing an image of "doggy heaven".
