A 27-year-old man charged with kicking and using a shovel to hit his partner's small dog, which had to be euthanised due to the severity of its injuries, was refused bail in the ACT Magistrates Court on Saturday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Security camera footage at the residence clearly captured the alleged offences in the backyard and the man made full admissions to police, documents tendered to the court said.
According to the court documents, earlier this week the man's partner left instructions to feed her two dogs at their Macquarie home.
When the man came home from work on Wednesday afternoon, he allegedly punched and kicked the smallest white dog multiple times before throwing it two metres and hitting it again. He then allegedly hit the small dog seven times with a shovel.
The man then shook the dog on the ground for 15 seconds, before carrying it back to its dog bed.
Afterwards, he left the residence to collect his partner and their daughter.
The man's partner and her neighbour took the dog to a vet on Wednesday evening after suspecting the dog was injured. The dog was euthanised due to the severity of its injuries.
Police reviewed security camera footage of the alleged offences on Thursday and the man was arrested on Friday.
The man told police he had a bad day at work and was angry because the dog constantly chewed his clothes and urinated and defecated inside the house.
The man was formally charged with aggravated cruelty to an animal causing death, an offence that carries up to a two-year jail term.
Magistrate Louise Taylor said the man displayed a "propensity for violence and cruelty to something smaller and more vulnerable than him" and the alleged acts were "deeply concerning".
Prosecutor Elizabeth West told the court police had attended the Macquarie home five times between September 2018 and March 2019 in relation to family violence matters.
The man was remanded in custody and will next appear in court on September 10.
Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
