Man jailed for torturing puppy

Gardaí arrived in the kitchen of a house to find a man covered in blood with a knife and a German shepherd pup stabbed to death at his feet.

Shane Power, aged 25, was jailed for five months yesterday on a charge of torturing the animal, a charge that carried a maximum sentence of six months at district court level. He had pleaded guilty.

Insp John Deasy said Power, of no fixed address, with previous addresses at Barrack St, Cappoquin, Co Waterford, and Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, stabbed the dog a number of times after something went wrong in the house where he was staying with his sister and the woman who owned the house at Willow Bank View, Fairhill, Cork.

Judge O’Leary was concerned with the underlying psychiatric issues that gave rise to this terrible violence to a living creature, and the fact that Power had 12 convictions for assault causing harm to people.

Emmet Boyle, solicitor, said the defendant suddenly became close to totally deaf at the age of 18 when all of his offending began. Mr Boyle said Power was previously diagnosed as bipolar and suffering depression for which he was prescribed medication.

Mr Boyle said the defendant got compensation at 18 for an earlier accident and spent all of the money taking in stray dogs at his mother’s home and he built a run for them. With this background with dogs, Power was particularly ashamed of what he had done to the dog.

In the absence of any explanation for the stabbing, Judge O’Leary speculated that the pup might have been barking or nipping, and that Power responded with extreme violence as a way of ridding himself of the irritation.

Asked if he could explain it, Power said: “When I drink everything goes through my mind and the sound ding, ding, ding, whacks into my ears.”

Power repeatedly said he was sorry, even after the sentence was imposed.