Man Beat, Stabbed Dog, Deputies Say

PORT RICHEY, FL — A 25-year-old Hudson man faces felony animal cruelty charges after a seriously injured dog was brought to the Emergency Animal Clinic in Port Richey Tuesday night.

According to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office, the man’s girlfriend heard yelping coming from the garage and went to investigate. When she entered the room, she allegedly saw her boyfriend standing over the dog with a knife in one hand and the dog’s collar in the other. The boyfriend then fled the house without saying a word, leaving the knife on the floor, an arrest report said.

The woman scooped up the dog and took it to the emergency clinic. Veterinary staff there told deputies the dog had a stab wound to the right side of its face and had been coughing up blood because of trauma to its mid-section, the report noted.

Houston Edward Neil Spencer was subsequently brought into custody and charged with felony animal cruelty. The dog’s condition is currently unknown.

Spencer was being held in the Pasco County Jail in lieu of $5,000 bond as of Wednesday morning.

Booking photo courtesy of the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office