PITTSBURG, Calif. – A disturbing act of animal cruelty was caught on video in Pittsburg.
During an argument, the video shows a woman kicking a dog named Gigi, sending the animal flying into the air and then into a planter.
The dog’s owner, Albert Lopes, is seen picking up his dog as she cries out in pain.
“I see the hurt that Gigi’s in,” Lopes told KTVU on Wednesday.
Dog suffers liver and leg injuries
What we know:
Gigi, a 10-year-old Japanese Chin and Papillon mix, suffered liver and leg damage. She weighs less than 3 pounds.
“She hit a planter where she ended up landing,” Lopes said. “She hit it, fell straight down, was upside down, yelping.”
The incident happened last week, a day after Lopes’ neighbor backed into some plants on his property. The woman’s daughter confronted Lopes, accusing him of yelling at her mother.
Lopes told KTVU he didn’t yell but instead raised his voice because she couldn’t hear him. On the video, the woman’s daughter is heard saying, “You yelling at my mama over there?”
“I wasn’t yelling,” Lopes replied.
The discussion grew more heated. Lopes then tells the woman, who’s with her daughter, to move.
“Get off my property!” he said.
The two continued arguing, and the mother told her daughter to kick the dog, using an expletive.
“She flew, I call that four, five feet in the air,” Lopes said.
Lopes said the daughter retrieved a gun from their car, and he called police.
Reaction by mother and daughter
Lopes said the mother and daughter smiled after Gigi was kicked.
“And the dog-kicker herself mimicked and mocked that sound,” he said. “If you zoom in on that video, you look at their expression, they act like they won the lottery.”
Lopes posted the surveillance video on social media, and the incident drew outrage. With the public’s help, Pittsburg police said they have identified the attacker in the video, but no arrests have been reported.
On Wednesday, Lopes picked Gigi up after her third vet visit in Lafayette.
The dog still suffers from neck pain, most likely from an injured disc.
“I would have been more comfortable if you would have hit me, or [thrown] something at me or beat me up. I’d be more comfortable with that,” he said. “But instead, you beat up a dog, who’s so innocent.”
What you can do:
Lopes has set up a Gofundme to help defray veterinary bills.
Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan
The Source: Interviews, surveillance video along with information from the Pittsburg Police Department.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
