Dog beaten, leg and pelvis broken - North Shore, AU

Friday, May 21, 2004

A New Zealand man inflicted multiple injuries on his flatmate's poodle after coming home and treading in dog feces. And because he wrote about it in his diary, he was convicted of cruelty.

Auckland man James Harnett arrived home one day earlier this year and trod in faeces left behind by two-year-old white miniature poodle Fifi, the New Zealand SPCA's magazine reported.

"Came home and stood in one of the poodle's shits, lost the plot and broke its hip, knee, two back feet, f...ing good job, I say," his diary entry for May 21 said.

"Gotta move out and pay $NZ1500 ($1370) vet bills."

Harnett, 20, told flatmate Carolyn Warburton the next day he had rubbed Fifi's nose in the feces and threw her on to a bed.

However, a vet said the poodle's injuries – a fractured left leg, pelvis and rib, a bleeding eye and severe bruising – were consistent with direct blunt force.

SPCA inspectors obtained a search warrant and found the diary with its incriminating entry under Harnett's bed.

After convicting him on animal cruelty charges, the North Shore District Court fined Harnett $NZ1,500 to cover the vet's bill and hit him for $NZ2,500 in costs.

References

• The Daily Telegraph - Nov 30, 2004

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