SPCA boss Greg Reid calls for jailing of Kaikohe puppy basher

Greg Reid, SPCA's chief inspector for Auckland and the Far North, wants a sentence of imprisonment for a Kaikohe man accused of bashing a puppy with a hammer. Photo / SPCA

The SPCA is calling for the jailing of a Northland man accused of bashing a puppy's head with a hammer, leaving it with multiple skull fractures.

The incident occurred around lunchtime on Sunday on Kaikohe's Hillcrest Rd when, according to police, the man came home after drinking and was angry he couldn't get the lunch he wanted.

He picked up a hammer and struck the family's 5-month-old brindle puppy eight times on the head, police said.

The SPCA's chief inspector for Auckland and the Far North, Greg Reid, strongly supported the police prosecution.

"The Far North SPCA hopes the court will hand out a custodial sentence for this appalling act," he said.

"All too often we see defenceless animals being harmed for no reason and this is a case where there should be a strong message from the courts that this behaviour will not be tolerated."

Senior Sergeant Brian Swann, of Mid North police, described the attack as "horrendous".

The man's teenage son called police, as did several other people in the neighbourhood who heard the puppy's howls of distress.

It could even be heard at the police station about two blocks away.

Officers took the puppy, named Valley, to Bay of Islands vets but its injuries were so severe it had to be put down. Injuries included multiple skull fractures, broken teeth, bruising to the eyes, brain swelling and bleeding from the nose and mouth.

■ Hanuere Paul Witehira, 53, was arrested on Sunday and appeared in the Kaikohe District Court on Monday charged with cruelty/ill-treatment of an animal and breach of bail. He was remanded in custody and is due back in court on July 18.