Mountaintop Natural Pets

Source: philly.com, June 18, 2010

Gatherers spoke of a life too short.

Activists, megaphone in hand, vowed the death would not be in vain.

At the foot of a park tree lay a makeshift memorial – farewell notes, flowers real and fake, framed tributes.

A plastic yellow bear that squeaks when you bite it.

Animal-rights advocates, their pets – and even a couple of city councilmen – assembled late Thursday afternoon in Barrett Playground at Eighth Street and Duncannon Avenue in the city’s Olney section to commemorate the life of a dog they had never met.

“The purpose is to send a unified message that violence against any living creature will not be tolerated,” said social worker Kim Wolf, a chief organizer of the event that drew roughly 100 people and a dozen dogs.

On Tuesday morning, a tennis ball’s throw from the site of the vigil, a 1-year-old female mixed-breed dog was found dead, suspended from a piece of playground equipment with a leash around her neck. Her paws were bloodied in what appeared to have been a frantic attempt to lower herself onto the ground just inches beneath her.

No arrests have been made, but according to George Bengal, director of law enforcement for the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, “We have established ownership of the animal.”

The PSPCA and the Humane Society of the United States are combining to offer a $4,500 reward for information leading to a conviction.

Solving cases like this, many vigil speakers emphasized, is pivotal, given the well-documented link between cruelty to animals and domestic violence.

“If we don’t stop them now, they’re going to grow up to be the next Jeffrey Dahmers,” City Councilman Jack Kelly said, referring to the serial killer. “We have to stamp them out.”

Councilman William K. Greenlee also was there. As the crowd swelled – including a few hoops players who trekked from the nearby courts to mug for cameras – visitors added fresh emblems to the tree memorial: a leash, a Frisbee, a leopard Beanie Baby, a 101 Dalmatians coloring book.

One note read, “Rest in Peace, Flora” – the name bestowed on the dog posthumously by the PSPCA.

“They’re all individuals,” said Susan Cosby, the organization’s chief executive officer. “So we give them all names.”

Source: Baltimore Sun, June 16, 2010

A $3,500 reward is being offered for information leading to the conviction of the person or persons responsible for the hanging death of a dog at a Philadelphia playground in the early morning hours of Tuesday, June 15, 2010.
A female, one-year-old, brown, pit-bull mix was found by a Humane Law Enforcement officer hanging from playground equipment at the Barrett Playground, at 8th and Duncannon Sts. in Philadelphia, PA 19120. The time of death is estimated to be in the early morning hours of Tuesday, June 15, 2010.

An investigation is underway, but the Pennsylvania SPCA needs the public’s help in gathering information about what happened to this dog.

Anyone with information should call the Pennsylvania SPCA’s toll-free, 24-hour cruelty hotline at 866.601.7722.

The initial $1,000 reward was increased after the Humane Society of the United States offered an additional $2,500 in reward money.

The staff here at the Pennsylvania SPCA has named the deceased dog Flora. If you would like to make a donation in her memory, or to find out how you can help other abused and neglected animals, please e-mail development@pspca.org.

Source: kplr11.com, June 15, 2010

The Humane Society of Missouri is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons who are responsible for the severe injuries.

The dog, named Desperado by his Humane Society rescuers, had a rusted, dirty chain link collar deeply imbedded around its neck. The gaping wound measured 1 ½” deep and 10″ long circling the dog’s neck. The chain link collar, which had to be cut with a bolt cutter, was only 6″ in diameter. Animal Cruelty Investigators stated the collar should have been at least 10″ in diameter to properly fit a dog of Desperado’s size.

The dog will receive continuing treatment to allow the wound to heal. Humane Society veterinarians are cautiously optimistic the dog will make a full recovery.

Desperado was discovered on the property of a Baden business, his chain tangled in equipment on the property. The owner of the business contacted the Humane Society of Missouri Animal Cruelty Task Force which brought Desperado to Humane Society of Missouri headquarters in St. Louis City.

TO REPORT INFORMATION IN THIS CASE:

Anyone with information about this crime should contact: Humane Society of Missouri’s Animal Abuse Hotline

314-647-4400

Source: Courier-Journal, April 9, 2010

The Humane Society of the United States is offering a $2,500 reward for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of whoever was responsible for the severe injuries suffered by a pit bull found in March.

Louisville Metro Police are investigating the case of a blue-gray pit bull found March 8 in an alley in the 1700 block between Garland Avenue and West Kentucky Street.

The pit bull’s lower jaw was displaced and fractured in half. Many of its teeth were also fractured, and there was a quarter-size chunk missing from its tongue.

The dog also had severe hair loss on the legs and chest as well as scratches and puncture wounds on its forearms, which may be a sign it was used in dog fighting, police said. The dog had to be euthanized immediately.

The reward could double if the information leads to a dog fighting conviction, according to a press release from the Humane Society.

A police officer who is investigating called it one of the worse cases of animal abuse she has ever seen.

Anyone with information should call the anonymous tip line at 574-LMPD.

Source: BostonHerald.com, Mar 25, 2010

After a Pekinese died ensnared in its own matted, ungroomed, overgrown fur, authorities are looking for the person who allowed the poor pooch to end up in that deadly state.

The dog was found at the end of a driveway in Waltham, unable to see or move because its coat was so severely matted. Vets say the unlucky dog had not been groomed in more than two years.

“It’s hard to imagine what his life was like,” said Dr. Susan Rosenblatt, chief of staff at Kindness Animal Hospital in Waltham.

“When he arrived, I thought he was dead until I picked him up. He was covered in feces and urine. He died of pneumonia, but that was probably because of the matts. He was breathing in feces and bacteria for years,” Rosenblatt said.

It took a team more than an hour to groom and shave the dog – which the staff named Matt after his condition. His claws had grown so painfully long that they curled and dug into his paws. More than 3 pounds of snarled fur was shaved off the dog. An X-ray revealed an open safety pin stuck in the dog’s coat.

Matt died a few days after he was brought to Kindness.

“It’s a sad ending to a tragic life,” Rosenblatt said.

Waltham Animal Control and the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals are investigating the apparent abandonment and neglect case.

Animal control officer Ann Campobasso said she is following several leads. A $1,000 reward is being offered for information.

Source: Scsun-news.com, Jan 4, 2010

Puppy Dog Ranch is offering a $500 reward for information leading to the arrest of person or persons who shot and killed Larry the dog on the evening of Dec. 31.

Larry was shot in the neck and killed on Twin Sisters Creek Road, off of Racetrack Road, in Arenas Valley on private property. Larry was 4 years old.

“He was considered “everyone’s dog” in our neighborhood,” said Laurie West, owner of Puppy Dog Ranch. “He literally greeted every single person in our neighborhood when they get home from work.”

West and her partner, Kevin Rodriguez, have filed a detailed police report.

The last person to see Larry alive saw him between 6 and 7 p.m. on Dec. 31.

Anyone with any information on who shot Larry should call Rodriguez at (575) 574-5717 or West at (575) 313-7232.

Puppy Dog Ranch is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dog rescue and sanctuary.

For more information, visit www.puppydogranch.org.

Source: Pennlive.com, Jan 6, 2010

The Humane Society of the United States is offering up to $2,500 for information that would lead to the identification, arrest and conviction of those responsible for a wounded and dead pit bull found alongside a Hampden Township walking trail on Dec. 29.

A resident found the wounded dog near the Conodoguinet Creek wrapped in two blue dog jackets. The 5-year-old dog had suffered broken legs, a broken foot, a broken trachea and many scratches and cuts, according to the Humane Society. Though the reasons for her death are unknown, the injuries were consistent with dogfighting, according to the Humane Society.

After initial reports, a jogger told the Humane Society he saw a man on the trail that day with several dogs. He was described as about 6 feet 2 inches to 6 feet 4 inches tall with medium blond hair and round glasses, and is considered a person of interest.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Humane Society at 717-564-3320, ext. 104.

Source: Wkyt.com, December 31, 2009

A reward of up to $2,500 is offered for information about a horrible case of animal abuse in pike county.

A dog, that’s now being called “Miracle,” was burned with hot grease a few weeks ago.

The dog was found in the Broadbottom neighborhood just outside Pikeville. The person who found Miracle took him to the humane society, and now he’s in Louisville getting further treatment.

We chose not to show some of the most graphic images, but some of the photos in the story may still be disturbing to some viewers.

This small, mixed-breed male dog was found howling, suffering from burns.

Neighborhood Watch Coordinator Claude Stamper says, “We’d had a dog that had been scalded with bacon grease. And of course, neighbors were concerned.”

Stamper says one neighbor who found Miracle rushed to get help. Humane Society officials say the burns are not the dog’s only injuries.

Pam Rogers, the Kentucky Director of The Humane Society of the United States, says, “Somebody had been very abusive to the animal. He had apparently a broken jaw, a gouged out eye, his tail had been cut off.”

The cruelty shocked neighbors, but Stamper says unfortunately he has learned to expect cases like this one.

“It’s alarming that something like this would happen, but it is not a surprise. If you have neighborhoods that do watch what goes on, they see a lot of things,” he says.

The Humane Society of the United States is doing what they can to find who’s responsible.

“We’re trying to facilitate that by offering the reward and working with law enforcement to make that happen,” Rogers says.

Neighborhood officials also hope to see justice served.

“I would like to see the person caught, and reprimanded,” Stamper says.

Officials say this level of crime against an animal is a felony in Kentucky.
If you have any information in this case, you are asked to call the Pike County Sheriff’s Department. That number is 606-432-6260.