Neighbor dispute over dead chickens leads to felony animal cruelty charges in Fort Worth
FORT WORTH, Texas - A Fort Worth man faces criminal charges after allegedly threatening a neighbor with a gun and fatally injuring the neighbor’s dog over dead chickens, police said.
Fort Worth man charged
What we know:
Fort Worth Police Department officers from the North Division responded around 10 a.m. Sunday to a "person with a weapon" call in the 4700 block of Baytree Drive.
Upon arrival, officers learned that an adult male suspect had pulled a gun on his neighbor following a dispute over a pet.
The suspect was not at the home when police arrived, but officers contacted him by phone. The man told police he had found two of his chickens dead and discovered a neighbor’s dog in his backyard. He admitted to injuring the dog and throwing it back over the fence into the neighbor's yard, authorities said.
Animal control officers responded to the scene and took custody of both the dead chickens and the deceased dog. While the neighbor reported injuring the dog, animal control officials noted the animal did not appear to have been shot.
What's next:
Detectives are investigating the circumstances surrounding the dog's exact cause of death.
The suspect, whose identity has not yet been released by police, has been charged with terroristic threat and cruelty to a non-livestock animal.
The Source: Information in this article is from the Fort Worth Police Department.