Warning: This article contains details that may disturb some people.
A Lower Hutt man has been prosecuted and sentenced for beating a dog to death after admitting to wrapping her in a towel and hitting her head on the ground.
Simeon Jackson was sentenced to six months of community detention and banned from owning or being in charge of an animal for five years during an appearance in the Hutt Valley District Court on Wednesday.
Jackson attacked miniature poodle Millie on December 2, 2020, while his then-partner, who owned the dog, wasn't home.
The SPCA said, citing the pathologist, that Jackson likely pinned down or crushed Millie, and caused her skull injuries through "significant blunt force trauma such as shaking or beating".
When Millie's owner returned home, her dead body was on a towel in the shower "and there were two puddles of blood on the bathroom floor".
"Initially, he told inspectors her injuries were accidental, following her head being closed in a door while attempting to contain her in a bathroom," the SPCA said of Jackson's offending. "Due to believing she was in pain and not knowing where to find a vet, he said he decided to end Millie's suffering by wrapping her in a towel and punching her twice in the head.
"He later said that he'd decided to move Millie from her crate into the bathroom so she'd have more room. As he reached for her scruff, she had tried to bite him, which annoyed him.
"In response, he threw her into the bathroom and went outside. When he returned, he wanted to discipline Millie for biting him, so he said he wrapped her in a towel and hit her head on the floor but underestimated his strength and how small she was, and accidentally killed her," the SPCA said in a statement.
SPCA chief executive Andrew Midgen said the attack was disgusting and Millie's death would have been frightening and painful.
"It's both shocking and upsetting that this family pet spent her last moments being treated in such a horrific and brutal manner that would have caused her considerable pain, suffering and distress.
"There is no excuse for any aggression or violence towards an innocent, defenceless animal and this kind of behaviour will not be tolerated."
