Dog left in backyard dies of heat stroke
Buffalo, NY (US)Incident Date: Thursday, May 31, 2007
County: Erie
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Dismissed (Conditional)
Person of Interest: Eula Bailey
Case Updates: 2 update(s) available
Two months after leaving the SPCA for a new home, a 3- year-old German shepherd was brought back - dead from heat stroke. His onetime savior now faces an animal cruelty charge.
Eula Bailey, 69, of Shumway Street, is scheduled to appear June 18, 2007 in Buffalo City Court on the misdemeanor charge.
"How do I know if my dog is dead?" she reportedly asked when she called the SPCA at about 3 p.m. May 31.
She claimed the dog, named Zach, had been panting heavily, but by the time animal rescue crews arrived 20 minutes later, Zach obviously was dead, and his body already was stiffening.
Temperatures were in the mid-80s that day, and there was no shelter, shade or water in the backyard in which Zach was found, Gina Browning, a spokeswoman for the SPCA, said Tuesday.
Within an hour of Bailey's call, Zach's body was back at the SPCA, where a necropsy began immediately to determine the cause of death.
The SPCA's thermometer tops out at 109.9 degrees. "It went to that immediately," Browning said. "It had to have been past that."
Even more disturbing, Browning related, is that a witness to the necropsy "said steam escaped from the dog's body."
Heat stroke was ruled the cause of death, and Bailey was charged this week.
Zach had come to the SPCA on March 27, by way of a rescue program to ease shelter overcrowding in Southeastern states.
Four days later, Bailey adopted him.
"You adopt to these people in good faith," Browning said. "We talk to them. There's an interview . . . counseling. You hope these animals are in their homes forever."
In Zach's case, she said, "What good was any of that?"
One of the rescue workers who responded to the May 31 call had been involved in Zach's adoption. "She feels so responsible," Browning said.
Bailey had appeared to be conscientious, Browning said, bringing Zach back to the shelter a few weeks after his adoption to have a medical concern investigated.
The next they heard from Bailey was May 31.
"She won't be adopting from here anymore," Browning said.
Case Updates| According to court records, Eula Bailey was diverted from prosecution on June 27. Bailey appeared in Buffalo City Court on a misdemeanor charge of animal cruelty. She was given 6 months court probation, during which time she is prohibited from owning animals. As long as Bailey does not violate the terms of her plea agreement, charges will be dismissed on December 28, 2007. | Source: Docket # 07M8602
Update posted on Jun 29, 2007 - 11:00PM |
Eula Bailey appeared in Buffalo City Court Monday morning.
She was charged with one count of animal cruelty after her dog died on May 31st.
She reportedly adopted the dog from the SPCA and she had the dog for a few months. | Source: WIVB - June 18, 2007
Update posted on Jun 19, 2007 - 6:47PM |
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