The owner of an emaciated husky who was found abandoned in Maple Ridge last year has been charged with animal cruelty.
When the dog, who was later named Willow, was rescued in January 2015 she weighed just 15 kilograms; a normal weight for a dog her age and breed is 24 kilograms.
"When she first came in she was unable to lie down due ot abdominal pain caused by rocks and soil in her gastrointestinal tract," said Lorie Chortyk, general manager of community relations for the BC SPCA in a release. "There were no food remnants in her stomach so it's likely that she had been eating gravel to try to stay alive. She also had trouble walking because her muscles were so weak."
Willow was treated at the Dewdney Animal Hospital in Maple Ridge and was cared for in an SPCA foster home for several months during her recovery. She was adopted by a Maple Ridge family last spring.
The BC SPCA's Cruelty Investigations Department identified the dog's owner, a Coquitlam university student in his 20s, after they received a call from a neighbour who recognized the dog after seeing her photo in the media.
Investigators submitted recommendations for charges to Crown counsel in February 2015 and charges were announced on Monday, Feb. 1.
Yu Lin is facing three counts of animal cruelty charges under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. If convicted, he faces up to two years in jail, a maximum fine of $75,000 and up to a lifetime ban on owning animals.
He is scheduled to appear in B.C. Provincial Court in Port Coquitlam on March 3.
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