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Murray Johnson was sentenced to 150 hours of community service after he used a wooden plank to beat his dog, Bolo, causing bruising and internal injuries.
A Christchurch man was caught on video hitting his dog with a wooden board with such violence that the animal suffered internal injuries.
Murray Johnson pleaded guilty in Christchurch District Court Wednesday to violating the Animal Welfare Act. He was sentenced to 150 hours of community service, ordered to pay a $ 1,500 fine to the SPCA, and disqualified from keeping dogs for three years.
The SPCA learned of the incident after a witness captured the abuse on video in September last year. A spokeswoman for the society said the person heard the dog howl in pain and saw Johnson using a wooden board to hit him with significant force in his backyard.
The spokeswoman said the video of the “violent attack” was very distressing to watch.
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Police were called to the home and SPCA inspectors searched the property the next day. The dog, a bull mastiff named Bolo, was seized along with a bloody wooden board and a large splinter of wood.
A vet examined Bolo and found that he was reluctant to move his shoulders, had a bleeding wound on his face below his right eye, and a puncture wound on his lower right lip, requiring stitches.
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The wooden board that Murray Johnson used to hit his dog, Bolo. The incident was videotaped.
The tests showed that Bolus had elevated levels of creatine kinase in his blood, which showed that he had suffered a tremendous amount of muscle damage.
X-rays also showed that the area around the dog’s kidneys had likely been subjected to physical trauma.
The vet concluded that Bolo’s suffering was both physical and mental, and that the injuries to the head and mouth would have been extremely painful due to the large number of nerves there.
The SPCA spokeswoman said Bolo’s size and sturdy bone structure, being a giant breed dog, likely protected him from more serious injury.
When interviewed, Johnson agreed that he had “taken things too far.”
He said that Bolo had walked through a door and was trying to fight another dog, causing him to “lose control” and hit his dog twice.
SPCA Executive Director Andrea Midgen said that while it was never appropriate to apply violence to animals, this case was particularly devastating due to the sustained mental and physical pain the dog had suffered.
“When an animal shows signs of unwanted behavior, physical punishment is not the answer.
“Instead, an owner should train their dog to respond to positive reinforcement of good behaviors, use lots of praise and be patient with their animal,” he said.
Bolo is now available for adoption by the SPCA.
