Dog starved to death
Buffalo, NY (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Apr 29, 2009
County: Erie
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Crystal Clarke
A town woman is facing misdemeanor animal cruelty charges after police discovered the body of a starved dog in Buffalo.
The remains of the 3-year-old Labrador and Pitt bull mix were found in a cage on Winslow Avenue by Buffalo police Wednesday, and the SPCA was called in Friday. Senior Animal Cruelty Investigator Michael Armatys looked into the circumstances of the abandonment, and a necropsy of the dog revealed starvation was its cause of death, said SPCA spokeswoman Gina Browning.
The investigation led the SPCA to charge Crystal Clarke, 30, of Balzac Court in the Sheridan Parkside neighborhood, with starving the dog to death.
"There was evidence in the cage that allowed the investigator to trace it back to her," Browning said.
Browning didn't call Clarke the dog's owner, but said she was its guardian. Clarke allegedly told investigators the dog was dead when she left it at Winslow, and that she didn't know what else to do with it. Browning said people at the SPCA are outraged by the animal's treatment.
"I don't know how anyone could consider starvation a viable option," Browning said. "That is a long, cruel death."
While laws have been added to make certain offenses against animals carry felony charges, starvation is still in the misdemeanor category. Browning said the SPCA is working with other agencies to get the law changed, but in the meantime perpetrators only face up to a year in prison, a $1,000 fine or both.
This incident is the second death of a neglected animal in two weeks, coming on the heels of a cocker spaniel abandoned at Anderson Inner City Animal Hospital last Wednesday. That dog had to be euthanized later in the week.
Browning said one of the most sad and outrageous parts of the story is that Clarke's home in Sheridan Parkside is only a few blocks away from the SPCA's facility.
"When you discover you can no longer care for an animal or decide you no longer want to, there are options other than allowing that animal to die," Browning said. References« NY State Animal Cruelty Map
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