Dog Put Down After Juvenile Admits to Beating It

A male juvenile admitted to police that he beat his five pound Yorkshire Terrier with a kendo stick at his New Milford residence on Saturday.

Chief Frank Papapietro said that were called to a borough residence on Saturday at approximately 3pm on the report of an injured animal.

Lt. Kevin Kiene and P.O. George Herrero were dispatched and met by a male juvenile who took them to a second floor bedroom where Kiene and Herrero saw the animal. According to Papapietro, the officers discovered that the animal was having a seizure and noticed that one of its eyeballs was bulging from the socket. 

Papapietro said that when questioned by police, the juvenile claimed that he had kicked the dog after the dog had bit him. Herrero transported the dog to the Oradell Animal Hospital in Paramus for treatment.

Papapietro said that the juvenile later admitted to Lt. Kiene that he had used a kendo stick to strike the dog. A kendo stick is a wooden baton used in martial arts.

According to Papapietro, the Oradell Animal Hospital notified New Milford Police that they had to "put the dog down" due to its extensive injuries. The attending vet said that the dog's skull had been fractured.

Papapietro said that the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office Animal Cruelty Task Force was notified and responded; they have taken jurisdiction over the investigation. 

Charges against the juvenile are pending from the Prosecutor's office.