Date
June 19, 2006
Contact
Kristie Phelps
(757) 423-0093
Elliot M. Katz
(415) 388-9641, ext. 225
In Defense of Animals
3010 Kerner Blvd
San Rafael
CA 94901
IDA is an international, California-based animal advocacy organization dedicated to ending the abuse and exploitation of animals by defending their rights, welfare and habitats.
IDA Adds $2500 to Reward for Information Leading to Arrest and Conviction of Puppy Abuser
Meridian, Idaho —Last week, DBSI employees found a fourteen-week-old puppy who had been doused with what was likely a flammable liquid and set on fire. News reports also stated that he suffered bruises and welts from being dragged. The puppy, dubbed Rocky, survived and police are now looking for the person responsible for the crime.
International animal protection organization In Defense of Animals (IDA) is adding a reward of $2,500 to the Idaho Humane Society and Humane Society of the United States’ $5,000 reward for any information which results in the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for setting the puppy on fire and dragging him.
Would you please consider sharing this information with your audience? It may be the only hope for finding the person responsible for this reprehensible act. Anyone with information on the case should contact Susan Clark at the Idaho Humane Society at (208) 342-3508 ext. 2273, via e-mail at sclark@idahohumanesociety.org or animal control at (208) 343-3166.
Studies by the F.B.I. and U.S. Department of Justice have proven the connection between animal abuse, child abuse and domestic violence. Violent acts toward animals, when left unaddressed, have been linked to intensified violence and neglect and/or expansion to human victims.
As a child, serial killer Ted Bundy witnessed his father’s violence toward animals and subsequently tortured animals for his own amusement. Earl Kenneth Shriner, who raped and stabbed a 7-year-old boy, was known in his neighborhood for hanging cats and torturing dogs. David Berkowitz (a.k.a. “Son of Sam”) shot a neighbor’s Labrador retriever. Brenda Spencer, who opened fire at a California school, killing two children and injuring nine others, had repeatedly abused cats and dogs, often setting their tails on fire. In Littleton, Colorado, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold shot to death 12 fellow students and a teacher and injured more than 20 others. Both teens had reportedly boasted about mutilating animals.
“When people report animal cruelty, they help the police and the local humane society protect animals and people from intensified violence.” says Elliot M. Katz, DVM, IDA’s President and Founder. “My experience with cases like this tells me that there is a lot more going on than what we are seeing.”
For more information about In Defense of Animals, visit www.idausa.org. Statistics are available at: www.guardiancampaign.com/Violencestats.htm.