Man charged with cruelty

THE RSPCA have charged a man who allegedly kicked and choked his pet dog at a popular Gold Coast beach.

Inspectors charged the man yesterday afternoon with one count of animal cruelty under the Animal Care and Protection Act 2001. He will appear at Southport Magistrates Court next month.

The charge came a day after inspectors seized the 32-yearold Gold Coast man’s dog.

Footage emerged earlier this week of the man hauling an excited blue staffy, called Rocky, from the back of a black ute before giving it a violent kick at the Palm Beach Parklands. In the video, which has been viewed by more than 3.5 million people, Rocky cowers before getting up again and tugging on its leash.

The man then appears to snap the leash back sharply a number of times in an attempt to settle the dog.

A woman in the footage handles another dog, which has since been seen by inspectors.

RSPCA spokesman Michael Beatty said the second dog in the footage did not belong to the man and was in good health, so was not seized.

Mr Beattie said Rocky was being kept at the RSPCA’s Wacol shelter while the charity awaits the outcome of the court action. He said the young staffy was doing well.

“It’s not up to the RSPCA to say (whether Rocky would be returned to its owner), that’s up to the courts to determine,” he said.

Mr Beatty said if Rocky was not returned to the original owner, he would be put up for adoption after undergoing behaviour and health checks.

“The process would be the same as with our other 600 dogs across the state,” he said.

Last year, the RSPCA recorded more than 2300 animal cruelty complaints on the Gold Coast, with the top suburb, Southport, receiving 92 complaints alone.