When crime comes calling, pets get caught in the middle

VIRGINIA BEACH

In the past five months, at least three Beach pets have been assaulted by burglars.

One animal was a docile 10-year-old cat. Another was a playful pit bull puppy. And the third was a German shepherd protecting her home.

Dr. Karen Smithwick, head veterinarian at the Tidewater Animal Emergency & Referral Center on South Independence Boulevard, said she's seen an increase in pet injuries inflicted by home invaders or burglars.

"They were extremely rare prior to this year," she said.

Officials with Animal Control and the Virginia Beach Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said they don't know whether pet assaults are on the rise. The SPCA usually sees four or five cases each year, said executive director Sharon Adams.

Rico, a year-old pit bull, was the first victim in the recent attacks. He was sleeping at GFY Clothing on South Birdneck Road on April 19 when several armed men forced the screen-printing shop's employees to the ground. One of the burglars shot Rico in the head with a .45-caliber handgun.

The dog then attacked the gunman, clamping onto his arm while the shop's employees escaped through a back door.

Rico still hasn't regained full use of his left eye, said Chuck Smellinger, owner of GFY Clothing.

On Aug. 31, Hershey, a 10-year-old Persian cat, was home alone when burglars broke into his family's house in Bellwood Meadows. They stole money, video games and jewelry before chasing Hershey throughout the home, stabbing him several times and leaving an 8-inch butcher knife buried in his chest, owner Joe Ciccone said.

Two weeks and several expensive procedures later, he's back to his old self, Ciccone said.

"He's absolutely great," he said. "He walks, he runs, he jumps."

The third case occurred last week when someone broke into a home in Salem Woods and shot a German shepherd that chased the person from the property. The dog suffered a gunshot to the snout and severe blood loss but has recovered and returned home, police said.

There have been arrests, but no convictions, in all three cases.

Burglars may have attacked the pit bull and German shepherd because they feared for their safety, officials said. But in Hershey's case, they said, cruelty seems to have been the only motivation.

"The cat was not a threat," Adams said. "So that was a gratuitous act of violence."

That's why the SPCA and Humane Society of the United States have offered a $3,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of Hershey's attacker, she said.

The best protection people can give their pets is to safeguard their residence from break-ins, said Animal Control Officer Wayne Gilbert. That means locking doors and windows, turning on lights and installing an alarm system, he said.

Crimes against pets are particularly traumatic for families, Gilbert said.

"It adds an element of even more personal loss when a pet is hurt through a robbery or break-in," he said. "It's heart-wrenching, because your pet is part of your family."

Kathy Adams, (757) 222-5155, kathy.adams@pilotonline.com