James Andrew Marchant grabbed Boomer, his terrier weighing barely 2 kilos, by the neck and threw him over a nearly 2-meter fence straight onto concrete. Neighbors shouted at him to stop. No one did anything until the police arrived.
The court in Bristol, England, heard a veterinarian describe the exact pain the animal felt: first from being grabbed by the neck, then from the impact against the pavement. Marchant, 42, never took him for a checkup. His housemate, Clair Yvonne Malik, 43, also did not give him the food he needed.
The sentence came in June: 10 years without being allowed to have animals for him, 5 for her, and a combined payment that does not even reach 1,400 dollars. Boomer recovered with the RSPCA and already has a new home. The question that remains hanging is whether that punishment is enough for what that dog suffered.