animal cruelty

Read the latest news reports about cruelty to animals, animal cruelty laws, and other stories of dog and cat abuse on Newser.com

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Farm Owner Hit With Animal Cruelty Charges Over Md. Zebras
Runaway
Zebras
Found in
Maryland
UPDATED
Dec 15, 2021 12:00 AM CST

Runaway Zebras Found in Maryland

They're back with their herd

(Newser) - Update: The two zebras that had been on the loose in Maryland since August have been located and reunited with their herd, WJLA reports. Authorities say they returned to the herd last week after having been corralled in an undisclosed location. A third zebra that originally escaped with them died...

Rescue Dogs Shot Dead Due to COVID Restrictions

Animal welfare group says it had a safety plan ready and was planning to take the animals

(Newser) - Volunteers were ready to pick up some dogs that had been impounded in New South Wales, Australia. Instead, the dogs were shot dead. A reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald learned from a local government watchdog group that an animal shelter in the middle of the state—the same state...

Undercover Probe Finds Catfish 'Gasping,' 'Slowly Suffocating'

Investigator at Simmons farm in Mississippi found 'numerous instances of animal abuse and suffering'

(Newser) - "I remember as a kid the moment I learned that there was an awful place animals were sent to be killed called a slaughterhouse. If you had told me back then that I would be working in one someday, I would've never believed you." So says an...

Texas Governor's Surprise Veto Spurs a Hashtag

Greg Abbott nixes bill on tethering dogs, leading to #AbbottHatesDogs trend

(Newser) - A bipartisan bill in Texas meant to protect dogs from abuse easily passed the state House and Senate with backing from law enforcement, animal control officers, and animals rights activists before landing on the desk of Gov. Greg Abbott—who then vetoed it. Friday's surprise move spawned the trending...

Wildlife Officials Seek Info on 'Atrocious Act' Against Pelicans

Authorities say dozens of seabirds are being intentionally injured in Southern California

(Newser) - "WHO'S MUTILATING PELICANS?" That was the all-caps question posed last week by Orange County's Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center after dozens of brown pelicans turned up along the Southern California coastline with serious injuries that appear to have been intentionally caused by a human. In a Facebook...

Florida Man Cites 'Stand Your Ground' in Iguana Killing

The judge was not convinced

(Newser) - A Florida man tried unsuccessfully to duck animal cruelty charges by claiming he had every right to beat an iguana to death under the state's "stand your ground" law. The law allows for the use of deadly force if a person "reasonably believes that using or threatening...

Teacher Accused of Killing His Kittens to Feel 'Powerful'

Graham Reid, who is no longer employed by Fort Bend ISD, was arrested in late April

(Newser) - Counselors were made available to students at a Houston-area school after news broke that a former teacher at the school had been arrested for killing his kittens. Graham William Reid, 29, is said to have had four kittens named Cabbage, Parsnip, Carrot, and Broccoli, and investigators say all met brutal...

After 'Grotesque Test' Kills Elephant Seal, Prison Time

Jordan Gerbich gets 3 months behind bars after he says drunk pal asked him to shoot marine creature

(Newser) - A man will spend three months in prison for shooting an elephant seal in the head . Jordan Gerbich pleaded guilty to one count of illegally taking a marine mammal in December, more than a year after prosecutors said he shot an elephant seal in the head with a .45 caliber...

Dog, 2 Pups Die After 'Unjust Cruelty' Seen in TikTok Video

2 Florida men arrested after illegal surgery performed by non-vet on pregnant French bulldog

(Newser) - A French bulldog and two of her puppies are dead, and two Florida men have been arrested after a botched surgery that went viral on TikTok. An affidavit cited by the Orlando Sentinel alleges that Larry Colon, 50, forked over $650 to 33-year-old Frankie Huertas-Rivera to perform a C-section on...

Report: Cop Ran After Porcupine to Kill It, 'Returned With a Smile'

2 Maine police officers fired, face charges amid allegations they beat porcupines to death

(Newser) - Two Maine police officers have been fired and now face criminal charges after being accused of beating porcupines to death with their batons. The state's Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife says that 27-year-old Addison Cox and 30-year-old Michael Rolerson, now formerly of the Rockland Police Department, were hit...

Petco Won't Sell Product That Brings Pain to Pets

Pet supplies chain also wants its competitors to stop hawking electronic 'shock' collars

(Newser) - A pet product that's been labeled "controversial" by the Humane Society will no longer be sold by one major chain. Petco announced Tuesday that consumers won't find human- and bark-activated "shock" collars—devices that administer electronic pulses of varying intensity and duration to help train animals...

California Cops Find Thousands of Cockfighting Roosters

Hundreds of other animals were rescued from Los Angeles property

(Newser) - As many as 3,000 cockfighting roosters were rescued from a California ranch this week as part of an investigation into animal cruelty. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said 2,000 to 3,000 roosters were kept on the multi-acre ranch in Los Angeles' Chatsworth area, where a...

At This 'Eden' for Animals, Cops Make Horrifying Find

Police find dead dogs, cats in freezer at Ky. no-kill animal shelter

(Newser) - Police seized 90 dogs from a no-kill animal shelter in Kentucky due to its allegedly poor conditions, reports the AP , and charged its owner after dead cats and dogs were found in the facility's freezer. The dogs were taken Saturday because of "poor living conditions" at the Trixie...

Dog Leads Rescuers to Neglected Animals

Georgia woman charged with animal cruelty

(Newser) - Animal rescue volunteers in Georgia say they went out to help a stray dog in Spalding County—and came back with six dogs and 10 puppies. The volunteers say that the stray mother dog, Clover, led them to a property where numerous dead or distressed and malnourished animals were in...

Cops: Suspect Lured Seagulls to a Horrible Fate

Someone in Maryland apparently ran over the birds while they ate popcorn

(Newser) - Maryland police are seeking a person who allegedly enticed seagulls with pre-popped popcorn and brutally ran them over, CNN reports. Responding to an animal-cruelty report, police showed up at a Laurel shopping center and found at least 10 dead birds. "Through investigation, officers learned that a subject purchased a...

&#39;It Looked Like a Battlefield&#39;: 15 Horses Shot in Kentucky
'It Looked Like a Battlefield':
15 Horses Shot in Kentucky
in case you missed it
Dec 21, 2019 2:45 PM CST

'It Looked Like a Battlefield': 15 Horses Shot in Kentucky

Free-roaming animals may have been hunted

(Newser) - For years, you could visit a rehabilitated strip mine in the woods in eastern Kentucky and be greeted by horses, some of which would walk right up to you. That might not be the case anymore. Authorities say at least 15 of the free-roaming horses were shot and killed with...

Trump Made Monday a Good Day for Animal Lovers

Animal cruelty is now a federal crime

(Newser) - Monday was a good day for "animal lovers across the country," said Florida Rep. Vern Buchanan. He's behind the bipartisan bill signed into law by President Trump on Monday that makes acts of animal cruelty a federal felony. The Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act is an...

Group Tries to End Yearly Possum Drop

Current law suspends all protections for five days a year

(Newser) - From Dec. 29 to Jan. 2, North Carolina humans can do anything they want to opossums. "No state or local statutes, rules, regulations or ordinances related to the capture, captivity, treatment or release of wildlife shall apply to the Virginia opossum" for those five days, a law states. A...

Trump Could Make Animal Cruelty a Federal Crime

Bill awaits his signature after unanimous House, Senate votes

(Newser) - Animal cruelty could become a federal felony if President Trump signs a bill headed for his desk. The Senate unanimously passed a bipartisan bill Tuesday making certain types of animal cruelty a federal crime. "Current federal law prohibits animal fighting and only criminalizes animal cruelty if the wrongdoers create...

Cop Doing Wellness Check Finds 'Absolute Worst' Home

Inside the 3-bedroom residence: 3 adults, 3 kids, and 245 animals

(Newser) - Florida police are seeking donations to help care for three children and 245 animals pulled from a single, squalid home on Sunday. It's a bizarre case that reportedly began when Gregg Nelson tried to break up with both his wife and his girlfriend, who lived with the couple in...

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