Brookline Woman Charged In Emaciated Golden Retriever Mix Cruelty Case

BROOKLINE, MA — As Brooke, the 3-year-old Golden Retriever mix found wandering the streets of Brookline weighing just 10 pounds in January, gains health and settles into her new adoptive home, the former owner of the dog has been charged with animal cruelty on Wednesday, according to MSPCA Law Enforcement.

The MSPCA said Mary Sellitto, 29, was charged with two counts of animal cruelty and one count of misleading officers in the case of Brooke and another dog found "very underweight" in her home in early February.

The MSPCA said Brooke was found in the area of Newton Street and Clyde Street in Brookline and was less than half of what a minimum weight should be for a 3-year-old mix of her kind.

"We asked the public for assistance identifying Brooke's owner shortly after she came to the hospital, and we're grateful for their interest in helping this dog," said MSPCA Law Enforcement Director Tom Grenham. "We're glad our Law Enforcement team was able to bring this investigation to a conclusion."

Both dogs were brought back to good health in the care of the MSPCA, and the organization has since placed them into new loving homes. Brooke's foster adopted her earlier this month.

Sellitto is scheduled to be arraigned on the charges in the Brookline District Court at 9 a.m. on March 25. The charge of intentionally misleading an investigator in a criminal investigation is a felony.