Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Abuse Case Details: 5 month old puppy buried alive

5 month old puppy buried alive
Saint Cloud, FL (US)

Incident Date: Monday, Nov 28, 2005
County: Osceola
Local Map: available
Disposition: Alleged
Case Images: 1 files available

Alleged: Shaun Paul Longfellow

Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

Case ID: 6359

Classification: Choking / Strangulation / Suffocation

Animal: dog (non pit-bull)

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Abuse was retaliation against animal's bad behavior

An anonymous tip led animal control officers to a shocking case of animal cruelty. A puppy was found buried alive in a yard near New York Avenue and 192 in St. Cloud. Osceola County Animal Control said they had never seen anything like this.

The dog's owner was arrested and before he was taken to jail said he buried the dog alive in a hole because he kept digging.

Animal Control officer Crissy Simmons had tears in her eyes when she found the 5-month-old puppy buried at his owner's home on New York Avenue in St. Cloud.
"I felt really bad for him. I picked up the wood as soon as possible and got her out of there," she said. "Sweet dog, not a mean bone in its body."

Animal Control said the dog's owner was the one with mean bones. St. Cloud police arrested 25-year-old Shawn Longfellow on the spot. Longfellow said this was only to teach his dog a lesson. "No! He's a good dog. I just wish he'd stop digging holes!" Longfellow said.

A piece of wooden fence was placed on top of the puppy and he was placed in a hole with the wood weighing down on him. Animal Control believes the dog was buried like that for a day. There was only enough room for him to breathe, but not move.

Longfellow is charged with animal cruelty, a third-degree felony, and he was cited with a $500 fine. Now Animal Control has to petition for custody of the dog before he's available for adoption. That could take several months.

Case Updates

The way the puppy playfully romped around a grassy enclosure at the Osceola County Animal Control facility Wednesday one would never guess that its owner had encased it in a shallow dirt pit.
Six-month-old Meatball, a mixed-breed, brown-shaded puppy with white spotted paws, was rescued by county animal control officers Monday after they received an anonymous tip.
To teach the puppy a lesson about digging holes in the backyard of his rented home, St. Cloud dog owner Shaun Longfellow, 25, 1314 New York Ave., shoved Meatball into a hole about eight to 10 inches deep and no more than three feet wide, Animal Control reports said. A piece of a wooden fence was used to cover the pit and the wood was weighted down with concrete blocks and dumbbells, Animal Control officials said. �He was stuck there, he couldn�t do anything,� said Animal Control Officer Crissy Simmons.

Meatball had been in the hole for at least a day, said Carie Sparkes, Animal Control Road Officer Supervisor. Officers reported they believed there was very little air coming through the wooden planks for the dog to breathe and that Longfellow had also been dunking the puppy�s head under water. If he had been there any longer, we probably wouldn�t have had the same outcome,� said Sparkes of the rescue.

Longfellow was arrested by the St. Cloud Police Department and charged with a felony count of animal cruelty. The case was unsettling with many of the department�s officers, said St. Cloud Police Chief Pat Kelly. �I can tell you that a lot of us felt the same way,� Kelly said. �You are picking on a domesticated animal that is most likely not going to defend itself. Who would pick on an animal like that?�
The phone number listed for Longfellow was disconnected and he could not be reached for comment.

Despite the abuse, the dog was found to be in good condition by a county veterinarian, county officials said. The puppy galloped after a tossed tennis ball at the animal control facility Wednesday, stopping only for some loving attention from the staff.
The media attention the case has received has made Meatball a popular adoption candidate. �We�ve had calls from Texas to London,� Sparkes said.

According to the animal control report, Longfellow�s wife came out of the house when control officers approached the pit, and admitted that her husband put the dog in the hole because he kept digging in the yard. When officers pulled up the wood, the dog was found lying motionless on its side. �From what we were told it wasn�t the first time he had done this, � Sparkes said.
A garden hose was also found on top of the wood. When Simmons asked the woman why the hose was there, she said her husband was dunking the puppy�s head under water. �We took it as the hole the dog was in was filled with water and he was dunking the dog�s head under the water,� said Simmons in the report.

Longfellow was also given a citation for animal cruelty by Animal Control. The citation carries a possible $500 fine. Animal Control officers must now go before a judge to seek adoption of Meatball, which Longfellow could contest.
If the county is successful, Meatball would be put up for adoption. Scheduling a custody court hearing for the dog could take up to three months, county officials said. �I would hope the judge would give us custody, not the owner,� Sparkes said.

Source: Osceola News - December 2, 2005
Update posted on Dec 2, 2005 - 10:25PM

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The hole was filled with water and covered by weights and pieces of wood, Local 6 News reported. Officers believe the dog may have been in the hole for three days.
"The dog was in the hole, basically laying on its side with its head flat with wood on top of it where he could barely breath," Osceola County Animal Services spokeswoman Carie Sparkes said. Longfellow was taken into custody after the discovery.

The man's wife offered an explanation for the hole in the yard. "She said she was not happy with what her husband was doing but that was his way of punishing the dog for digging the holes," Sparkes said. "It was going to teach him a lesson.
Neighbors were not surprised Longfellow is facing an animal cruelty charge because they would often hear Meatball crying at the house.
"While his owner awaits a trial, animal services will petition for custody of Meatball and once that happens he will be put up for adoption," Problem Solver Nancy Alvarez said. "But that could take up to three months."

Longfellow was not at home when Local 6 News tried to reach him for comment. He faces up to five years in prison is convicted of the animal cruelty charge.

Source: Local6 News - November 30, 2005
Update posted on Nov 30, 2005 - 7:28PM

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5 month old puppy buried aliveSaint Cloud, FL (US)

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5 month old puppy buried alive
Saint Cloud, FL (US)