Pet Owners Who Abandon Animals Could Be Held Accountable

Monday,  November 23, 2009 5:08 PM

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COLUMBUS, Ohio — The case of a pit bull that was left to die in a basement is prompting a new program from the city attorney's office, CrimeTracker 10's Angela An reported Monday.

Prosecutors said that the dog's owner, Gwendolynn Carter, abandoned the dog and left it to fend for herself.

Found among the trash, debris and feces was one of the pit bull's puppies.  It appeared that the mother pit bull was so hungry that she ate her own offspring.

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"(Carter) just left (the dogs) in the basement all alone - no lights, no food, no water - nothing," said Bill Hedrick, the assistant city prosecutor.  "The scene was so horrific that even the police officer was sickened.  To eat her own puppy, I've never seen anything like this before and again.  It's pretty grotesque."

Although it has been more than a year since Carter allegedly abandoned the pets in her east side home, prosecutors said that she still tops the list of outstanding warrants, given the horrific conditions discovered inside.

City Attorney Rick Pfeiffer approved posting a list of wanted animal abusers on the city's Web site that details names and charges of nearly 100 outstanding warrants, including the top worst five.

Carter is No. 1 on the list, An reported.

"It puts people on notice that if you're going to engage in this kind of behavior, your case won't just languish and go down here.  We're going to give you some attention and it's going to be unwanted attention."

Stay with 10TV News and 10TV.com for additional information.

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