Charges laid in ‘profoundly shocking’ BC animal cruelty case
Posted March 7, 2018 10:39 am.
Last Updated March 7, 2018 12:44 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Editor’s note: This article contains graphic and disturbing details that may not be suitable for all readers.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – A couple from Duncan has been charged with animal cruelty in the case of an emaciated dog that was found in critical distress last month.
“This is one of the most profoundly shocking and disturbing cases of abuse we have ever witnessed,” says Marcie Moriarty with the BC SPCA.
She says the dog was found on a tether that was only a few inches long, adding it was standing in a large pile of mud and feces.
“As they got closer there was an overpowering stench and they realized that, not only was the dog severely emaciated, but his collar was deeply embedded into his neck, causing massive infection.”
Moriarty adds the dog’s head was swollen to two to three times its normal size.
“The constables used bolt cutters to free the dog and immediately rushed him to an emergency veterinary clinic,” says Moriarty. “The wound from the embedded collar exposed the dog’s trachea and jugular vein — it was horrific.”
“Anybody who walked up to that property would have seen the dog, smelled the dog. And I’m baffled that we didn’t get a call until the time that we did,” she says.
The dog was under around-the-clock care, but he died two days later.
“This case blows my mind, quite honestly. I see a ton of animal cruelty in my job and this one threw me,” Moriarty adds.
If convicted Anderson Joe and Melissa Tooshley could face up to five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, and a lifetime ban on owning animals.
