A 6-month-old puppy beaten and brought to Castaic Animal Care and Control Center was put up for adoption Tuesday, and the man who beat the dog was sentenced to 27 days in county jail.
On Tuesday, Zackary Matthew Burnette, 25, of Nolensville, Tennessee, about 16 miles south of Nashville, appeared in court in Santa Clarita where he pleaded no contest to one misdemeanor count of cruelty to an animal, said Ricardo Santiago, spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
“He was sentenced to 36 months of summary probation, 27 days of county jail, ordered not to own or possess any animals during his period of probation, and surrender the dog in this case and agree that it could be adopted (through) Animal Control,” Santiago said.
On April 5, deputies with the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station responded to the 23600 block of Lyons Avenue for a reported case of animal abuse.
The incident happened mid-afternoon in the parking lot near the Smart & Final Extra store and the Valencia Lanes bowling alley.
“A caller heard the sounds of a dog loudly yelping, whimpering outside of a business in the parking lot, and at first thought a dog had been hit by a car,” Shirley Miller, spokeswoman for the SCV Sheriff’s Station, said Tuesday.
“No dog had been hit by a vehicle. However, a 6-month-old puppy was allegedly witnessed being struck and harshly disciplined by its owner for relieving itself in his vehicle,” Miller said.
Responding deputies arrested Burnette on suspicion of animal cruelty, a felony.
The scared pup was gently coaxed out of the car by deputies, Miller said, and taken to the animal shelter in Castaic.
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