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Case ID: 17695

Classification: Beating

Animal: dog (non pit-bull)

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Puppy beaten to death with shovel
Trenton, NJ (US)

Incident Date: Sunday, Apr 10, 2011
County: Mercer

Disposition: Alleged
Case Images: 1 files available

Alleged: 16 year old male

A Prospect Park woman is mourning the loss of her 9-month-old puppy, Thunda, who was allegedly beaten to death with a shovel right in front of her eyes by a 16-year-old neighbor boy on Sunday.

The pint-sized pup's owner, Tiraya Green, 34, is still upset and traumatized since watching her baby take its last breath after the horrid beating Sunday.

"The puppy was born in my house and I have the mother," a shaken Green said. "He was a Maltese/Yorkie mix."

That day as she was walking back to her house with the two leashed dogs at 10 a.m. they became tangled in a bush near her back door.

"I untangled the mother and put her inside the house. As I went to untangle the puppy, the leash broke," Green said. "He ran away and up to the neighbor who is about 16 maybe. I yelled before the dog got to the neighbor, but the puppy was just playing.

"The neighbor turned around and started beating the puppy with a shovel. ... I was in shock -- I actually stood there and I watched him kill my dog. I couldn't even move! I couldn't do anything. I was in complete shock.

"Then he then left."

One of Green's relatives called police and two officers and animal control arrived as the puppy lay mortally wounded on the ground.

Green said the officers stayed with her and the puppy until he passed.

"The officers and the animal control guy were so nice and comforting," she said. "They petted him and made him feel as good as they could. I'm thankful to them for that. It was very touching.

"I don't know why the boy hit the puppy. The neighborhood kids knock on my door to play with my dogs. They love people and to play."

As a possible explanation for the beating, Green said that about three days prior to this attack, the puppy got loose and ran up to the teenager, who started kicking it, and demanded she grab the dog.

"I told him he has to stop kicking him so I can get him," Green explained. "He finally stopped and I grabbed the puppy. I think he just didn't like the dog and claimed he bit him."

Tiraya Green said the boy's mom later claimed the dog had bitten him.

"That puppy never bit anyone," she said.

She said the police haven't lodged any animal cruelty charges against the teen and the investigation into the incident is ongoing. She said she heard yesterday that some city detectives were in the rental office at Prospect Village where the boy lives, inquiring about him. Police last night didn't return calls inquiring whether they're investigating Thunda's beating death.

"I want people to know that there is so much hatred in this world," Green said. "This dog was loved and part of my family. He was an ankle puppy. Why kill the dog?"

From the boy's family, she said, there has been "no remorse, no nothing. I do forgive the boy. I do think that he needs help, and I do hope that he gets help before he does this to someone else's animal. Or he escalates to a human."

Green and her family plan on holding a memorial service for Thunda on Saturday morning at her house.

Meanwhile, her mother dog puts biscuits in the window -- Thunda liked biscuits -- and waits on the couch for her baby to come back.

As a warning to others, Green said: "I want people to just be more protective of their animals and aware of their surroundings," she said.

"I don't know why there is so much hatred in this world."

References

• « NJ State Animal Cruelty Map
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