Injured puppy left to die in bag hung from tree
Alberta, AB (CA)

Incident Date: Tuesday, Mar 4, 2003

Disposition: Alleged

Alleged: Arnulf Krzyz

A city man has been charged after a puppy was found in a bag hanging from a tree in the north end. The six-month-old border collie-cross was suffering from severe abdominal wounds and had to be put down after a veterinarian assessed it, said SPCA Const. Chad Goeree.

"The condition the animal was in was grotesque," said Goeree. "There's no question this animal should have received immediate medical care. This wasn't an injury that could have been cared for by anyone other than a registered veterinarian. An animal was left to die.

"Our biggest concern wasn't the injury, it was that the animal didn't receive the proper medical care immediately. Anybody would have seen this dog and realized this dog needs to get medical attention right now. Not tomorrow, not in an hour from now, right now."

Arnulf Krzyz, 46, said yesterday one of his three dogs recently had pups, and one of the pups had been seriously ill.

"One of the pups was sick from birth," he said. "I couldn't take it to a vet. There wasn't much anyone could do for it, anyways."

He said he wasn't sure what happened to the dog.

"I put him in a mesh bag because his stomach was falling apart. I didn't hang him in the tree, I set him in the snow so the SPCA could come and get him because my neighbour promised he was going to call the SPCA," he said.

A concerned resident did call in the SPCA.

"There was quite a bit of blood," said Goeree. "The gentleman didn't know whether the dog was alive or dead."

Krzyz said he couldn't afford to take the pup to a vet. "I make nine bucks an hour, I pay 600 bucks a month in rent, plus heat, plus hydro. I can buy dog food sometimes and sometimes I don't eat."

Krzyz is charged under the Alberta Animal Protection Act for causing or permitting an animal of which he is the owner to be in distress. He is expected to be in court on April 10. If convicted, he faces a fine of up to $20,000.

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