Police arrested a Florida man for allegedly beating his dog Thursday with a chain and then fighting bystanders who stepped in to protect the animal, FOX 35 reported.
Video recorded by witnesses shows a bystander, Raymon Prush, confronting the dog’s owner, Jose Rivera, 31, as identified by the Volusia’s Sheriff Office (VSO), according to FOX35.
Prush claimed he witnessed Rivera hitting the dog in the face, he told FOX35. “I don’t understand why somebody could do that. It’s just heartbreaking,” Prush said. (RELATED: Video Shows Woman Throw Dog Off Parking Garage, Leave It For Dead)
Bystanders fight Florida man accused of whipping dog with chain https://t.co/yC16mWE9Lf
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The video also shows other bystanders trying to protect the dog from Rivera, FOX35 reported.
Prush claimed he put himself between the bystanders and Rivera so nobody else would get hurt, according to the outlet.
“He [Rivera] hit me in the face on this side, I guess, to try to knock me down. That’s when I yoked him up to get him to stop being violent,” Prush said.
Authorities said at least four of the nine bystanders who struggled to get Rivera under control before deputies arrived were hurt, including Prush, according to FOX35.
Prush revealed he was having trouble understanding how somebody could hurt their own pet, he told the outlet.
“We treat them as children. They live with us. They eat with us. They sleep with us. They’re amazing things, and nobody deserves, nor any animal deserves, to get hit like that in the face, especially with a metal chain,” he said. “I just don’t understand how somebody could do that to something that’s so special.”
Rivera, who is facing multiple charges, is being held on $51,000 bond, FOX35 reported.
Deputies say the dog, who is currently under someone else’s care, suffered cuts and other injuries, according to FOX35.