PETA worker charged with theft of deputy's hunting dog

I don't buy the idea that the PeTA workers were waiting to call the PeTA office for "instructions", common sense would tell any rational person to call the number on the collar...oh, that's right, we're talking about PeTA here so rational thought and logic have no place in their lives.....
Isn't it strange when their reps are blasting the Norfolk Animal Management Center, their own people are on trial for breaking the law?

I cant stand dog hunters. Their logic is flawed and Ive even reported a virginia man I watched in a field who pulled up and shot 5 dogs because, as he said "They are cheaper to replace next year than feed." The only type of dog hunting I can tolerate is bird. Shooting a running scared animal isnt hunting. However, before you go thinking I'm anti hunter... Ive hunted every year since I was 10 years old, and killed more deer and turkey than half the so called "good old boys" out there. Now for the "meat" (good peta pun huh?) of the matter. The issue is that the collar is worth in the neighborhood of 500-800$ and removing it is serious theft. I'm sure the guy doesn't care for the dog, but the collar is serious bucks to these so called hunters.

Who's Afraid of (Virginia's) Wolf in PETA's Clothing? Hmm, let's see. Well, I for one would certainly support any organization that lets their female members stand nude in front of Scope during Circus time, or who'd support their members who "steal" puppies, kill 'em -n- dump 'em in another state (dumpster behind Piggly Wiggly NC) or who'd terrorize children with bloody Ronald McDonald dolls in place of actual Happy Meals--yup, I'd say that PETA is just exactly the kind of group that the framers of our Constitution meant to protect while drafting how to support free speech. Oh, & by the way, removing a dog's tracking collar was a plus since these folks didn't expect to get stopped by the dog's owner, Sheriff's Deputy Cooke. (PETA-get lost)

I see the PETA employees don't have much else to do other then blog on this story and, oh yeah, drive the back roads looking for hunting dogs to "rescue". If you believe Ms. Benoit was just driving along the road and by chance spotted this dog I have a bridge to sell you. Maybe they wanted to take the dog and put it out of it's missery for it's own good and dump it in a dumpster somewhere in NC.

What a crazy world: Someone sees a dog alongside a busy road and stops to help and gets charged with a felony. But the person who deliberately let his dog run around unattended doesn't even get a warning. This entire case should be dismissed!

This dog was left outside to chase other animals and did not return home. The PETA members were obviously trying to help him. The deputy seems to view the dog as a hunting tool, not a loving companion. He should be setting a good example by having his dog on a leash at all times. I'm glad that PETA looks out for unnattended and neglected animals. God knows what could happen to them.

In a county where there is no leash law, seeing a dog running loose is not against the law. LAW is the key word here. Had it been in Va. Beach it would be a different story. Southampton Co. has no leash law just like most other rural counties. A dog with a collar and identification plate is well within the law. Un-doubtedly the tracking collar was removed by the PETA people as well. The law was broken and PETA and their employees should be held accountable.

My goodness, why are so many of you so afraid of PETA? It's so bewildering to read people saying they enjoy reading about PETA being fined or sued. I would bet that not one of these people have ever bothered to read literature or watch video's of some of the wonderful changes this organization has made to reduce senseless cruelty to animals. The organization is not comprised of terrorist wacko's or crazed vegetarians. And if you ever tour their headquarters, you will find many "companion animals" freely roaming around and getting much love and attention from people who only desire respect for animals. I know Virginia is a rather "redneck" state filled with hunters and fisherman but come on people, can't we all live together peacefully?

That's the problem, they removed the dogs tracking collar. If they did the so called right things by removing the tracking collar so they wouldn't be charged with stealing that, what about the DOG that was wearing it. Here's a tip for everyone who doesn't know, if a dog has a tracking collar on it, it's not a stray. Call the number on the collar, if you don't get the answers or comments your looking call animal control.

PETA founder Ingrid Newkirk brags openly about rescuing animals only to kill them herself. Her philosophy is that pet owners are evil and animals should be liberated -- then killed. Sadly, PETA raises millions and millions from unsuspecting people and then spends it to kill innocent animals who deserve to be loved and cared for. Think of all the shelters they could build to safely house and feed animals until someone adopts them! Too bad they'd rather use that money to denigrate loving pet owners and kill defenseless animals.

If I were driving and saw a stray dog next to a busy road, I wouldn't think twice about stopping to rescue him. What's next, will helping little old ladies cross the street be considered a "crime" too?

How would you feel if your dog was picked up with a ID collar and taken 50-75 miles away and then you receive a call saying they had found him 200 yards away from your house? My opinion is that it makes no difference if it was a hound, if PETA was truely trying to help protect this dog they should call from the area where they pick up the dog and not remove id collars

I used to live in Charles City where hunters let their dogs run free regularly, and often just let them go at the end of hunting season. I ended up with 4 dogs that these paragons of the community didn't want when I called the numbers on the dogs' collars, and in other cases, the owners just told me to let the dogs run and they'd find 'em later. Yeah, right. These dogs always had fleas, ticks and (in the case of the ones I took in) heartworms. And don't get me started on the canine bodies that litter Rts 5 and 60 from car strikes. That deputy should be thanking those girls for saving his dog's life, not nitpicking how they did so. But for hunters, it's not about the sanctity of life, it's about property. Very, very sad.

They can't win! If they pick up a dog before the animal gets hit by a car, they are wrong. But can you imagine the outcry if this clearly marked PETA van drove by a dog running freely by a busy roadside?

I wonder if the PETA people get tomato sauce smeared on thier cheeks for their first successful fox hound hunt?

1.) the dog had a tracking collar and they removed it. Why? 2.) the dog had the number on the collar but they fail to call because they want PETA HQ to call to make the owner feel bad. 3.) the people in the van lied when confronted with the information identifying the dog. Please stop saying that this dog was being "Rescued" as some sort of excuse for the people not doing the right thing to begin with which would have been to call the owner, to leave the tracking collar on, and to have told the truth to the officer when confronted. We all know that you have a political agenda with animals, don't cloud the truth with this misguided agenda. Remember, you VP takes Insulin made from animals, and I thought animals had no medical use....

While they *may* have been trying to keep the dog from being hit, because they are PETA employees, it's very likely that they had ulterior motives. PETA views any animal that does a job as a "slave," including police dogs, service dogs, etc. Members have been known to harass service dog handlers and even attempted to steal service animals. "...Ingrid Newkirk has described her group's overall goal as 'total animal liberation.' This means... and no pets (not even seeing-eye dogs)." So hmm, the group wants to abolish all service dogs and pets, and oh look, here's a hunting dog, we bet it'd rather be dead than the slave of a human. But wait, let's save cows and chickens! Hypocrites.

Why doesn't PETA go after Micheal Vick and the dog fighting. Oh I guess they feel that is ok forceing dongs to fight one another

While I do believe that animals are to be treated humanely, organizations like PeTA (People Embarrassing the Tidewater Area) are over-the-top. My misgiving about this entity is not that they advocate for animals, but they seem to hold them to a higher value than people. Therefore, I consider PeTA to be a bunch of misguided and myopic misanthropes.

One might even say that they are the jack-booted shock troops in the war on common sense. It's just that with PeTA, goose-step has a double meaning.

For these reasons and countless more, my heart is filled with joy whenever some social fascist, who spends time telling me how to live, winds up in jail. Just in time, too. Paris Hilton just made some room for PeTA to move into.

Hysterical people, try to put aside your venom and ignorance for a minute and look rationally at this case. Two people saw a dog running loose on the roadside, they stopped to help. Their intentions were good. PETA scares you because they expose things the rest of us would rather not know about. I applaud their objective - to help animals.

Basically, these two PETA people rescued a stray dog who was in danger of being hit by a car, and the only reason they are being charged with a "crime" is because the dog happened to belong to the sheriff's deputy. He's just throwing his weight around and the judge should have seen through it.

I say guilty and fine PETA,too. Then close their organization forever. Isn't that basically what Peta did to Michael Vick?? but then again every time Peta comes under the microscope, they make up some reason why it has nothing to do with their organization. People believe them and nothing is done. When Vick said he had nothing to do with it,Peta chastised him along with most of the public. What kind of sense does any of this make? Fair is Fair. Whoever can't agree with this needs to check where they live and how they are allowed to live and then open their mouths.

Gee, and I thought everyone who worked for PETA were a bunch of goody-two-shoes.

If they were worried about being charged with stealing the collar why did they litter. What about stealing the dog? That was clearly marked as a having an owner close by. Did the dog look sick and in need of help? PETA's way of operating makes me fear for all animals. If anyone ever stole my animal I would be just as upset as the person involved.

Ingrid Newkirk, the president of PETA, has enslaved animals in her apartment. She calls them "pets". How sick is that. Does she ask these animals if they want to be her "pet"? Hmmmm? I have one word for PETA: RICO

It's such a lovely day when I see PETA charged with felony or anything. PETA should be placed on the FBI terrorist list like ELF/ALF. PETA contributes funding to these terrorist organizations.

Let's just find them guilty, lock them up and save us the inconvenience of the trial. We all know about their organization and what they do. They are nothing more than a bunch of militant vegetarians who have very strict beliefs as to what "Ethical" treatment actually is. In their perfect, and ethical world, nobody would have dogs or cats as pets because they would have all been euthanized in the back of a van somewhere and left to rot in a dumpster. Nobody would be able to eat meat, and god forbid you would want a fur coat to keep you warm in the winter...
Their organization belongs on a terrorist watch list.

This case against Andrea Benoit has nothing to do with a dog but with J.T. Cooke's feelings about PETA. I think it's disgraceful that the judge has allowed this case to proceed. Between the two of them, they're giving Southampton County a bad name.

Good.

Let's hope that Virginia's newly proposed dog hunting law that would prevent people from dumping their animals out to hunt on privately owned property also prevents them from leaving their animals wandering overnight along truck clogged interstates. As the judge said, she did the right thing, her reasonable actions only happened to be a felony because the irresponsible owner was also the local sheriff/animal control officer who didn't want to get embarassed for his negligence. Obviously these charges will be dismissed when/if the case gets appealed out of the local circuit to more reasonable higher courts that demand professional conduct from public officials.