Police Reach Conclusion After Gathering Expert Opinions
A companion dog behavior correction expert and YouTuber who disciplined a puppy using abusive methods such as repeatedly pulling the leash or kicking it has been handed over to the prosecution.
The Hwaseong Dongtan Police Station in Gyeonggi Province announced on the 5th that they had sent Mr. A to the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office on the 3rd on charges of violating the Animal Protection Act.
Mr. A is accused of abusing the puppy by forcefully pulling the leash multiple times during the training process.
He also posted videos of such training scenes on his YouTube channel in October of last year. In the videos, Mr. A disciplines the puppy by forcefully lifting the leash to choke the neck or repeatedly causing it to collide with a fence when the puppy exhibits problematic behaviors such as barking aggressively. The videos also show him kicking the puppy and teaching this to the owner.
Animal Freedom Union filed a complaint against Mr. A for animal abuse in November of the same year. The Animal Freedom Union stated, "According to Article 10, Paragraph 2 of the Animal Protection Act, acts that cause pain or injury to animals despite the existence of other methods to prevent direct threats to human life or body or property damage are prohibited," and added, "In most of the training videos, Mr. A applies intense shocks to stop the companion dog's behavior, and this process includes acts that directly cause physical pain."
The police, who launched an investigation, received opinions from experts including veterinary professors and veterinarians that Mr. A's actions were "close to abuse," and decided to send the case to prosecution.
Mr. A is reported to deny the charges.
Mr. A is a dog behavior correction specialist YouTuber with 160,000 subscribers. Amid the abuse controversy over Mr. A's abusive training methods, it is known that he was stripped of his companion dog instructor certification by the Korea Kennel Club last year.
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