A man who killed three puppies a decade ago was sentenced to jail Thursday for abusing his ex-girlfriend’s dog over several months in 2014.
Truck driver Christopher George, 44, of Norristown, pleaded no contest to charges of animal cruelty before Bucks County Judge Wallace Bateman.
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The 44 year old was sentenced to to serve one day less than a year to one day less than two years in the Bucks County Correctional Facility, according to a press release from the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office.
George was accused of abusing Rock, a boxer breed. The dog belongs to his now-ex-girlfriend and lived at her Falls Township house with her family. The dog lost weight, suffered cuts, had 23 broken ribs, a puncture wound and bloody paws, among other injuries, authorities said.
“My biggest concern right now isn’t Rocky. He is safe with me and back to himself. My concern is for the next dog or animal he comes in contact with,” Donna Anderson, George’s ex-girlfriend and the dog’s owner, said before Bateman. “Christopher George needs help.”
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Anderson said that Rocky likely took the “beatings that were meant for us.” She attributed the violent abuse by George to problems with their home life.
Rocky’s veterinarian, Dr. Carrie Phelps, testified at a preliminary last year that she treated the boxer twice before noticing the broken ribs, which all appeared to be at various stages of healing. She told the court that the various stages of healing indicated the ribs were broken in multiple places and at various times, not all at once. The 5-year-old dog also suffered air under the skin, which felt like bubble wrap when touched. Phelps said that condition is usually caused by broken ribs or a lung injury.
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“I have never seen anything of this severity, except for animals that have seen great trauma, like getting hit by a car,” the doctor said of Rocky’s various injuries.
Rocky went missing, suffered the numerous injuries and had a noticeable change in demeanor during George’s abuse, authorities said.
“Whether you want to admit it or not, what you did to this dog was unconscionable,” Bateman told George at sentencing.
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Anderson said during the sentencing that she was unaware that roughly a decade earlier he had kicked four puppies, killing three of them. The puppies belonged to an ex-girlfriend. George was sentenced for that incident and served house arrest, probation and paid fees.
George will be screened for house arrest while at Bucks County’s lockup. Anderson told the judge she was understanding that George wouldn’t likely get much help at the prison and that house arrest would likely be best for him.
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“Bateman ordered a psychological evaluation as part of George’s sentence, along with 100 hours of community service and five years of probation after his jail term is complete. He also ordered George to have not contact with his former girlfriend and her family or with any animals,” the district attorney’s press release said.
