Virginia woman jailed after fleas kill her tied-up dog
PRINCE GEORGE COUNTY, Va. -- A woman will spend six months in jail after she was convicted of misdemeanor animal cruelty for the death of her dog, who was killed by fleas, reports CBS affiliate WTVR.
Josefina Baldera Solis' dog Golden was found alive and tied up to his dog house by Prince George County Animal Control officers who were called on September 9 after neighbors heard the dog whimpering for hours. Golden died on his way to the vet.
A necropsy determined Golden died from anemia. Put bluntly, the fleas drained Golden's blood, said Prince George County Animal Control supervisor Job Greene.
"It was an astonishing amount of fleas on the dog," Greene said. "The doctor had never seen a dog with that many fleas before."
Greene said the six-month sentence that Solis faces was one of the strongest he'd seen during his time on the job.
"The sentence was fair... if you neglect to provide care for your dog -- it is going to be taken seriously," he said. "It was a harsh, but fair sentence."