Animal Rescue Board Members Charged with Cruelty

FLORIDA -- Two St. Petersburg residents face a number of charges after law enforcement officials discovered dogs, cats, raccoons and a single opossum living in cramped, unsanitary conditions at a home on 13th Avenue North.

According to the St. Petersburg Police Department, Patricia Gates Scites, 67, and Veronica Anne Faulseit, 48, were charged with three counts each of misdemeanor animal cruelty. Those charges resulted after officials responded to Faulseit’s home at 4162 13th Ave. N. Tuesday morning following a complaint.

 

 

 

 

“Once on the scene, officers determined that numerous dogs, cats and other species of animals were being caged in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions without the benefit of adequate food and water,” the department wrote in an email to media.

Police say that Scites and Faulseit are both board members of All Creatures Great and Small Wildlife Inc., an animal rescue.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the SPCA and Pinellas County Animal Control also responded to the scene to help with the investigation and removal of the animals.

Twenty-three adults dogs and 14 puppies were found in cages with no clean food or water available, the police department wrote. “Feces and urine were found inside and around all cages,” the email stated. “Those cages that had water dishes were filthy and cloudy and sometimes had feces inside the water.”

Two outside dogs were also found without clean food and water.

“Two of the dogs appeared to be suffering from malnutrition, one additional dog had staples in its head and no medical records could be located to confirm the treatment was provided by a licensed veterinary professional,” the email stated.


 

  

 

In addition, four raccoons were found inside a large cage covered in urine and feces and an opossum was found in another without food or water. Fourteen cats were discovered inside kennels without food and water. While they had litter boxes, they were overflowing, the agency noted.

Inside the home, officials found four dogs and four birds that appeared to be well cared for, the police department noted.

Scites and Faulseit were being booked into the Pinellas County Jail as of Tuesday afternoon.

It is unclear at this time if the animals will be made available for eventual adoption.

(Florida Patch - March 24, 2015)

Iowa: Mason City police seek man who zipped cat inside duffel bag and then threw her into river to drown

IOWA -- Police are searching for a man who threw a cat trapped in a gym bag into the Winnebago River in Mason City.

The man threw the gym bag containing the adult calico cat into the river near the bridge at South Kentucky Avenue about 6 p.m. Saturday, officials say.

A Mason City man and woman saw the man throw the bag into the river, officials say.

The witness was suspicious, "so he checked on the bag and there was a cat inside it — a live cat," said Mason City Police Sgt. Greg Scott.

The cat survived. It was being held on Tuesday in quarantine at Mason City Animal Control.

Shelter staff nicknamed the adult female cat Winnie — short for Winnebago River. Unless claimed, she will soon be available for adoption at the Humane Society of North Iowa.

"She’s in good shape, (but) she’s a little scared," said Sybil Soukup, executive director of the Humane Society of North Iowa.

The case was under investigation on Tuesday afternoon. No arrests had been made.

“It’s just a shock that anyone would dispose of an animal in this method,” Soukup said. “Zipped her up in a duffle bag and threw her into the freezing cold waters of the Winnebago River. That is a certain death that is cruel and painful.”

Mason City Animal Control is tasked with taking in stray animals in Mason City. To report a stray, call Mason City police at 421-3636 and ask for an animal control officer.

The cat's survival was due entirely to the Mason City man and woman who saw the animal thrown into the river, Soukup said.

"Fortunately, curiosity saved the cat when the couple that saw it happen went over and fished it out of the water," she said.

Anyone with details about the case can call Mason City police.

Update: The man has been identified as William Nathan Hill, 69, and he was charged with animal cruelty.

(Globe Gazette - March 24, 2015)

Texas: "My son's head was torn open exposing his temple and skull. His cheek was torn open and so was his arm"

TEXAS -- Our son Christian was mauled by a pit bull Dec 10th, 2013. He was riding his skateboard home from a friend's house and a huge pit bull that was being walked on a retractable leash, broke free and charged after my son.

He jumped at Christian's face and knocked him off his skateboard.  He continued his grip until the woman walking him, pulled him off of my son. He was startled when Christian let out a blood curdling scream and so he attacked again.

This time my son covered his face and the dog clamped down on his arms and started dragging him.

The woman grabbed the dog and left the scene never once rendering aid to my son. He was left there bleeding in the snow until a woman heard him screaming from inside her home a few mins later. She told her husband to check it out and he looked out and saw my son bleeding and ran out to grab him.

Once inside, his wife started trying to stop the bleeding with towels while her husband called 911.

The dog was quarantined for 7 days to insure he didn't have rabies, and then it was given back to the family. 

My son's head was torn open exposing his temple and skull. His cheek was torn open and so was his arm. The attack happened 13 days before his 14th bday. 2 surgeries later his face has healed leaving behind huge scars and scar tissue under his cheek. To a 14 yr old boy (now 15) those scars are more than just a reminder of how cruel animals can be, but also a daily reminder of how cruel kids can be as well.

He now gets called names like Hatchet Face, Scarface and Fugly A** on a daily basis. Having my son called that from, what use to be his "friends", is gut wrenching. In the beginning Christian didn't want another surgery bc the pain he experienced from the initial attack and surgeries was too much. However, bc of the constant bullying, he has changed his mind.

Christian used to be a great student. AB honor roll. Now his grades have fallen tremendously and it seems like he wants to give up altogether. I won't let that happen. I have seen how severe bullying can get and how thousands of kids have taken their own life bc they felt there was no way out. I WON'T LET THAT HAPPEN TO HIM! He is a beautiful boy and deserves the best life has to offer, just like every other child does. That, unfortunately, comes at a cost we just can't seem to afford at the moment, which is why I have turned to creating a Gofundme account.

We are asking for $10,000 for the beginning of his facial reconstruction surgery. We are asking our friends and family to donate whatever you are able to so that we can possibly minimize the bullying. We know we can't eradicate bullying completely unfortunately, but as parents, we have to do everything in our power to keep it from happening to Christian.

More than all of this, I want to see my son smile from ear to ear again without telling me his scar looks stupid when he shows his teeth bc it causes the scar tissue underneath his cheek to stick out. Even if you only donate $5 or $10, eventually it will add up and be enough to help Christian smile again and just possibly make his life alot easier at school. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

Love in Christ,
The Fowler Family

Update
Christian met with the surgeon yesterday and it looks like nothing can be done without being invasive. So they are going to cut open the existing scars and check all the bones underneath to make sure none are fragmented. Then they will cut out the old scar tissue and the incisions will be closed up using smaller gauged stitches to minimize scarring. After 6 weeks of healing time, they will use laser therapy to minimize any redness that may occur (if they have to at all).

Christian is excited about it. He was worried about an extended hospital stay since the last time he was there for a week almost. He will be in and out on the same day and that's great news. All we need now is the funding to begin the process. We know it will happen in time. We have faith it will all work out as God intended. Thank you everyone.

GoFundMe link: "When Pit Bulls attack"
Created March 24, 2015
Taffinay Fowler  
  Medical
  ANNA, TX

New York: Horse put down due to injury at Saratoga County farm, owned by brother sister duo Duane Carpenter and Ann Arnold, surrounded by neglect allegations

NEW YORK -- The Saratoga County Sheriff says one horse had to be put down due to an injury Monday at a Saratoga County property surrounded by prior neglect allegations.

Officials could not say what caused the horse’s leg injury as the investigation is ongoing. Neighbors of 131 Wilton Greenfield Rd. and some town officials said the issue is an ongoing nightmare.

In February 2015, 55-year-old Duane Carpenter was charged with failing to provide water to 12 horses. His sister, Ann Arnold, had previously transferred the property and horses to him after she was convicted of abusing more than one dozen horses on the farm in 2012.

In 2013, Carpenter was also charged with failing to provide water, food and care to three horses.

He was back in Greenfield Town Court Monday for that trial.

Carpenter spoke with NEWS10 ABC about the allegations.

“There’s hay out in the pasture now,” he said. “I feed them corn in the morning, and I also feed grain in the morning.”

Carpenter said the horses are always cared for despite the allegations from his February arrest. As a result, the horses can now be seized as evidence, but Carpenter said the court wants him to pay for their care once they are removed. He said the charges are false.

“If the other water is ever really frozen, they can come here,” he said. “That’s part of the pasture, and they’ve lived here all their lives. They know it’s available.”

Carpenter said he called the veterinarian to check on the horse with a leg injury. He also addressed Arnold’s arrest.

“My caregiver had a public defender who didn’t do very much in the way of defending him,” he said. “What happened with Ann was a medical issue that were not acknowledged by the court.”

Veterinarian Dr. Benjamin Anderson testified on Monday that in December 2013, the horses were thin, needed vet care, and also had issues with hydration.

“Eight or ten of them were underweight,” he said.

Neighbors like Lisa Giordano said the alleged abuse has gone on for decades.

“We’re happy that some movement is happening, but you know how many lives; however much suffering has gone on too long,” she said. “Too long for the suffering.”

(News10 - March 23, 2015)

Earlier:

• New York: Greenfield horse owner Ann Arnold arrested for animal neglect again
• New York: Greenfield woman, Ann Arnold, convicted of 19 animal cruelty counts
• New York: Veterinarian treats sick horses by court order after DA tells judge that Defendant Duane Carpenter not caring for them himself.
• New York: Brother sister duo, Duane Carpenter and Ann Arnold, accused of animal cruelty
• New York: Agencies struggle to care for horses in neglect cases
• New York: Cops Say Albany Man, Duane Carpenter, Failed To Provide For Horses that he got from his sister Ann Arnold, who was convicted of animal cruelty

City Of Onawa And Pet Owner Fighting Over Fate Of St. Bernard

IOWA -- The fight between the city of Onawa and a man over his dog is getting some national attention. The city says he's a dangerous animal but the dog's owner says he's a gentle giant that has never hurt anyone.

Tuesday night, Onawa's City Council will decide the future of Zhivago the St. Bernard dog.  Police there are declaring the dog a dangerous animal after it had broken off its chain and ran loose around town, twice.  The dog's owner says his pet isn't dangerous at all. In fact, he says he's vital for his health.

If he loves this dog so much, why is it being left CHAINED out in the yard????

Billy Parker says his dog, Zhivago, is not just a pet. He's a therapy dog who helps him deal with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, linked to a terrible accident.

There are so many liars out there claiming their pet is an emotional support animal, a therapy animal, etc. that I do not believe them unless they show official proof.

"He's been my savior, my buddy, I don't know what I'd do without him," said Billy Parker, Zhivago's owner and Onawa resident.

But the three-year-old St. Bernard is over 200-pounds, has outgrown its chains and has gotten loose in Onawa, twice. So police there have declared it a dangerous animal and one that should be seized.

"My understanding is that the dog has gotten off the chain multiple times and has alarmed other people as well. It would be correct to say that has been no actual bites of any actual animal, person or individual," said Bradley Hanson, Onawa City Administrator.

"And for the city of Onawa to just show up and say you've got three days to get rid of your dog or we're going to seize him... It's devastated our whole way of life, it really has," Parker said.

For Billy and his wife, Zhivago is part of the family.  They say he's never hurt anyone, not even their cats or children.

"He's never once hurt any of them, in any way shape or form. If he would have bitten someone, it would be different. I would totally understand," Parker said.

Which is why the family's story is capturing the attention of people all over the country. People in Iowa and even as far as Canada have come to the dog's defense both online and through phone calls to the city.

"They like to say that, 'well the dog hasn't bitten anybody'. But my next question is well, do you want to wait until this dog has actually bitten or maimed someone. And their comment is, well, no," Hanson said.

Which is why the issue is being decided by city council Tuesday. That group will vote to decide Zhivago's future. Though a future without his beloved pet is something Parker says he can't bear to think about.

The public meeting to determine the fate of Zhivago will be held at the Onawa City Hall on Tuesday, March 23 at 7 p.m.  The meeting is open to the public and will allow for both sides to present their case concerning Zhivago the dog.

Zhivago's supporters have set up a YouCaring page for him to help the family raise money to afford a lawyer to help the Parkers keep their dog.

(KSFY - Mar 23, 2015)

United Kingdom: Grandmother 'killed by the pet bought to protect her'

UNITED KINGDOM -- A grieving daughter has revealed the dog that mauled her mum to death had been bought to protect her.

Rhona Greve, 64, was killed by the family’s pet American bulldog at the widow’s home on Friday night.

Her daughter Clare, 41, told the Mirror: “She was very attached to the dog. Everywhere she went the dog would follow. It was always by her side. We don’t know why it has gone for her.”

She added: “The dog was bought to protect her.”

Rhona’s grandson Craig Greve, 23, appeared in court on charges relating to the animal, called Solo.

Unemployed Craig, [who lived in his grandmother's home, let her pay all the bills and feed him], is accused of owning a dangerous dog, as well as breaking an order that banned him from keeping dogs... Want to guess whose bright idea it was to dump this dog on her? I doubt she would've picked out a hulking "AmBull". This was ALL Craig's idea.

The court heard that Rhona died in hospital after suffering 16 bite wounds mostly on the neck and face.

Prosecutor Katy McMahon said police who were called to the home in Ely, Cardiff, after the attack reported that the dog was “snarling with blood on its teeth”.

Miss McMahon also told magistrates in Cardiff: “Officers described the dog as going berserk.”

Craig Anthony Greve, who pleaded not guilty, was remanded in custody to appear at the city’s crown court next month.

He had raised the alarm when he returned home after the mauling and found his grandmother lying on the kitchen floor with serious injuries to her legs, arm and stomach.

The medium-sized dog was bought two or three years ago after mum-of-four Rhona’s husband Malcolm died.

Clare said she fell out with her mum a couple of years ago but was devastated by the death. She added: “I’ve lost the chance to make up with her.”

(Mirror UK - March 23, 2015)

Arkansas: Pit bull stigma resurfaces after Pit Bulls attack, kill man

ARKANSAS -- "The pit bulls that came under his gate just tore me up," Roger Frazier vividly recalls the vicious dog attack that happened months ago. He continues, "I told him if he didn't do something, they were going to kill somebody and that's what they did."

It was Saturday morning, at CJ's Garage in Pine Bluff, that 36-year-old De'Trick Johnson was mauled to death by a pack of seven pit bull terriers.

  

Upon hearing the news, Arkansans immediately took to social media.

One person writing in part, "Don't blame the dog…blame the owner! He didn't use those dogs as pets. He used them as weapons…"

Another writes, "I'm so sick of people saying don't blame the breed!" Someone else adds, "I'll be glad when these dogs are outlawed."

"And that's very sad. That's very sad," Debbie Howell with the Humane Society of Pulaski County explains. "What we're dealing with is not an animal problem, it's a people problem," she continues.

Howell says it is not necessarily about the breed, but the conditions the dog is placed in.

Howell says, "You can have a very nice typical dog, like a lab or a golden retriever. In the wrong circumstances and with the wrong owner and the wrong treatment, they can also be dangerous."

Seriously? Ms. Howell please stop making ridiculous comments like this. What tired saying are you going to drag out next? That it's the 'deed not the breed'? That pit bulls were nanny dogs way back in the day? There are plenty of stories about pit bulls that were raised in the household by a loving family with children and other small pets and then suddenly the dog 'snapped' and tried to kill them all. I have NEVER heard someone say this about a Golden Retriever, a Collie, a Corgi, a Cavalier...

OWNERS WHO DID NOT ABUSE THEIR DOGS BUT

WERE ATTACKED BY THEM ANYWAY

Couple attacked by their sweet pibble while driving through Costa Mesa

"I don't want people to think bad of pit bulls" says
woman whose dog mauled her husband to death

Woman loses part of leg after pit bulls 'raised in a loving home' attack



Pregnant woman left with arm hanging 'by a thread' after attack by her OWN dog

“She thought they were playing back and forth like this,
 then all of a sudden, she saw her on the ground and kept
saying, 'Polo, Polo,' because that was the dog’s name,
 and she was rolling over, so she (the neighbor)
 called 911 and then she didn’t see her no more.”

"I cried... he was my best friend" says little boy mauled by his pit bull

Pit bull decides to attack its entire family; gets Tasered by cops

Dad still defends pit bulls after family pet tries to kill his child

The Humane Society sees it quite often, and they are very protective of their pit bulls, like the one named Sugar.

Howell says, "She was actually chained and had a cable around her neck that was ingrown."

Fortunately for Sugar, she was not negatively affected by her circumstances, but that's not the case for all dogs. In light of the recent dog pack attack, dog owners like John Segars can only hope that this case will not bring negative attention to their dogs.

Segars says, "Don't penalize everybody because of the negligence of a few."

A few?? A few???

WHEN YOU DENY THAT YOUR DOG HAS

 INHERENT CHARACTERISTICS WE PAY THE PRICE

Owner of Pit Bull Which Attacked 4 Yr Old: "Dog is Not Aggressive At All"

Restrictions for different types of dogs vary from city to city and county to county. An advocacy group called DogsBite.org maintains a link of the different rules in Arkansas.

(THV 11 - ‎Mar 22, 2015‎)

Earlier:

• Pine Bluff man mauled to death by group of pit bulls, one still at large