Two Brooklyn dog owners have been arrested in separate incidents after authorities found they'd been brutally allegedly abusing and/or neglecting their animals.
According to the ASPCA, Bentley, a one-year-old male shih tzu mix, was allegedly beaten by owner and Flatbush resident Alex Dykes so badly back in September that the little guy suffered a fractured skull, jaw and brain injury; luckily, veterinarians were able to treat him at a nearby ASPCA hospital, and he's in puppy foster care right now. Dykes was arrested on Wednesday and charged with one felony count and one misdemeanor count of animal cruelty, which are punishable by up to two years in prison.
And the second dog owner, 50-year-old East New York resident Venus Laventure, was arrested in February after authorities accused her of starving her 6-year-old Chihuahua, Vampiro. A Brooklyn shelter contacted the ASPCA after Vampiro, who Laventure had adopted from the shelter in 2006, was found abandoned at a pet store in the neighborhood in January. Veterinarians say Vampiro had been denied proper care and nutrition; he was emaciated, dehydrated and blind, and photos show him looking horrifyingly skeletal. His owner has been charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty, and could face up to a year in prison.
Bentley and Vampiro aren't the only abused animals who've made headlines in the area recently: a New Jersey couple was accused last month of severely abusing their pet cocker spaniel, and have since been arrested and charged with animal cruelty. And just earlier this week, a house on Long Island was condemned after authorities found nearly 200 animals living in horrific conditions inside.
