Thursday, January 17, 2008

Animal Cruelty Results in Charges

GEORGIA -- Authorities with Upson County Animal Control say two separate cases have resulted in cruelty to animal charges against local men.

Eddie Reveire, Jr., 205 East Gordon Street, has been charged with animal cruelty after an Animal Control Officer and a City of Thomaston Police officer responded to a call of neglected dogs.

Once on the scene, officers discovered one deceased male pit bull dog and one severely malnourished pit bulldog in the rear of the residence.


According Animal Control Officer Smart Web, the deceased dog was still attached to a chain and had been dead for some time.

‘There was no water, food or shelter for either one of these dogs,” said Web. “I feel if we hadn’t gotten to the other dog when we did, he would have suffered the same fate as the other.”

Web says in interviews about the dogs, Reveire told the animal control officer the dog was sick and instead of taking him to the vet to see what was wrong with him he instead sought advice from his “home boys” and decided he would take a wait and see attitude.

“He told me the dog had been sick like this a month before and he had been told by friends that the dog ‘looked’ like he had parvo,” said Web. “When I asked him why he had not taken the dog to the doctor he told me because he had been like that in the past and he thought the dog would recuperate on its own.”

In a separate case involving animal cruelty, Web and his assistant responded to a complaint of nuisance dogs on Aviation Drive.

While writing a citation at another lot, he noticed a black lab mix walking up the street. While trying to capture the dog, Web noticed a black and white dog tied in the front yard that appeared to be malnourished.

“While I was checking this dog out, I looked to my right and could see a another dog that appeared to be dead inside a doghouse,” he said. “Upon further observation I could determine the dog was in fact dead. He was malnourished and there were no signs of food. There were also maggots in its mouth leading me to believe he had been this way for some time.”

Web said animal control impounded both dogs.

John Sullivan, Aviation Drive, lot 30 was charged with two counts of cruelty to animals.

In a written statement, Sullivan says he knew one of his dogs was dead and he had disposed of it by placing it in the dumpster. He said he didn’t know how the dog got back in the doghouse and according to Web even accused animal control of placing the dog in the doghouse.

The other dog, who was severely malnourished and impounded from Sullivan's home was taken to the shelter and subsequently adopted after it was ruled he was in good health.

(Thomaston Times - Jan 16, 2008)