Punched and kicked pet puppy
A MAN who dragged his pet puppy on a lead through a cemetery, stripping the skin off its paws, before attacking it, has been given a suspended jail sentence.
Liam Smith (22), of Tuckers Road, Loughborough, was seen by staff at the town’s cemetery in Leicester Road, swearing at the animal as he dragged it yelping and screaming along the road.
They intervened and were sworn at by Smith.
Later a woman walking her own dog tried to grab the puppy and then called the police.
Members of the public stopped Smith from boarding a bus with the puppy while they waited for the officers to arrive.
Smith was taken into custody and told police he had just tripped over the dog and that he had been in a hurry to get home because he had to go shopping.
He was later charged with subjecting an animal to unnecessary physical violence, which he denied.
At a hearing earlier this year he was found guilty in his absence of the charge.
Smith appeared at Leicester Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, April 27 where he was sentenced over the incident, which happened on April 20 last year.
Kevin McCole, prosecuting on behalf of the RSPCA, said the two cemetery workers saw the dog “crying and yelping”.
He said: “The defendant had a small child riding a bike on stabi- lisers and he was dragging the dog behind while effing and blinding at it because it wasn’t walking.
“It was rolling over and screaming. He stopped and he kicked and punched it.
“It tried to get away through some railings and he pulled it back.”
Mr McCole said one of the cemetery workers told Smith: “If I see you touch that dog again I’m going to call the police. If you don’t want the dog give it to me.”
Mr McCole said Smith just swore at the man and then a woman who was walking her dog then tried to take the bulldog’s lead off Smith and when she failed to do that she called the police.
After Smith’s arrest, the dog - called Cash - was taken to the vet and found to have skin ripped from its paws, damage to its claws and a spinal injury.
It will now be re-homed by the RSPCA.
Serena Joshi, representing Smith, pleaded with Deputy District Judge Anita Price not to send her client to prison or to take his other dog off him.
She said: “He has been the sole carer of his four-year-old daughter. He does have responsibilities and if he was to be put in custody he would lose custody of that child.
“He’s been in trouble in the past, however his daughter is his life. He does not want to jeopardise that at all.”
She also said his other dog had helped him deal with his depression.
Deputy District Judge Price said: “It was an extremely unpleasant offence. Pain and suffering were caused to the puppy.
“I find it falls into the highest culpability. It’s clear the injuries caused suffering and they will take some time to heal.”
Smith was given a 12-week jail sentence suspended for 12 months, as well as 100 hours of unpaid work and was ordered to spend 15 days with the probation service doing various rehabilitation activities.
He was also ordered to pay a £115 victim surcharge and £500 court costs.
He was banned from keeping any pets, including Cash or his other current dog, for the next five years.