A 64-year-old Hong Kong woman has been arrested on suspicion of animal abuse after a video of her dogs attacking each other and becoming injured as she pulled them away went viral.
A woman named Li shared the videos on a Facebook group for Sai Kung residents on Monday and warned other members to avoid the dog owner in the video. Li’s husband, surnamed Ng, had filmed the clips while the couple was walking at the Lions Nature Education Center with their neighbor on Monday. Ng, Li, and their neighbor were walking their three dogs at around 5pm when they encountered the woman and her son walking a brown poodle, a black poodle, and a Pomeranian.
Ng told Apple Daily the black poodle suddenly pounced on his neighbor’s pug and bit down on its neck. Li reportedly smacked the poodle to get it to release the pug after its owner “did nothing” to stop the attack.
Li wrote that the groups crossed paths again later in the day, at which point both sides took their phones out to film each other, leading to the events in the video (warning: graphic content). As the dog owners argued, the black poodle started attacking the Pomeranian. When Li and Ng told the woman to control her dogs, she yanked all of her dogs upwards by the leash for about 20 seconds until the Pomeranian visibly went limp.
Li, Ng, and other passersby can be heard yelling at the woman to go to the vet and to check on her dog, to which the woman repeatedly shouted, “Walk away!” She then picked up the Pomeranian and walked away while dragging her other dogs by their leashes.
Netizens later identified the poodle’s owner, surnamed Lee, and found her Facebook page. In a post with cheerful photos of her day in the park, Lee said her “happy day ended sadly” after Jazz (the black poodle) went “crazy” and “killed my Pomeranian”, Pony. “He bitted [sic] Pony by his neck and wouldn’t let go. Pony died instantly.”
Lee continued, “I was so sad and angry and decided to put Jazz to sleep. This is the fourth time he attacked other dogs. He attacked another one at the Science Park earlier today. I cannot stand him killing his own brother so I took him to the vet to put [him] to sleep. Now I only have two girls left. So sad!”
A spokesperson for the police confirmed to Apple Daily that they had arrested a 64-year-old woman on suspicion of public misconduct and animal abuse. A representative for the SPCA told Apple Daily that the incident was “extremely concerning” and said they would assist the police if necessary. The SPCA spokesperson also said that dog owners who know their pets have behavioral issues should take precautionary measures such as avoiding crowded places, muzzling their dogs, and consulting behavioral specialists.
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