NORTH STRABANE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A North Strabane Township man is facing animal cruelty charges after police say he tried to kill two of his dogs with a hammer and throw them away in the trash.
According to the criminal complaint, Daniel McCullough admitted to striking the dogs, Rawhide and Tiny, in their heads with a ball-peen hammer, on the front porch of his Angel Estates home. He said he placed them in a box and discarded the box in a trash can because he believed they were dead.
But one of the dogs, the long-haired chihuahua named Tiny, managed to escape. Tiny was found critically injured at a neighbor’s home, where she received emergency veterinary care and survived.
The neighbor declined an interview but told Channel 11 he helped get the dog medical attention before bringing her home and hopes to keep her.
Investigators say the other dog, Rawhide, was taken away when the trash was picked up and believed to be dead.
North Strabane Police say McCullough, who is 73 years old, admitted to the attack and even confessed to the reason he did it.
“They changed the rules recently in his community so you can only have two dogs maximum, and he had four dogs. So, he decided to get rid of two,” said Lt. Mike Miller.
McCullough is now facing multiple charges, including aggravated cruelty to animals. His other two dogs have been safely removed from the home.
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