Man charged with throwing pit bull Oreo from N.Y. building fails to appear at sentencing, faces jail time

Fabian Henderson, the man accused of throwing his pit bull, Oreo, from a six-story Brooklyn, N.Y., building this past summer, faces up to four years in jail following his failure to attend his sentencing hearing earlier this week.

Henderson was charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, criminal trespassing and "overdriving, torturing and injuring animals" in the incident, which left the dog with severe injuries that included multiple leg fractures, a broken rib, bruised lungs and internal bleeding, according to the Brooklyn district attorney's office.  He pleaded guilty to a felony charge in October.

The New York Daily News reported that Henderson's initial plea would have spared him jail time, although it would have barred him from owning a dog again.  However, there's now a warrant out for his arrest as a result of his decision to skip the sentencing.

"It's just another incidence of anti-social behavior," Joseph Pentangelo of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the organization that cared for Oreo while she recovered from her injuries and later felt the wrath of many in the animal-rescue community for its controversial decision to euthanize the dog because of  aggression issues, told the Daily News. "It's indicative of a person who has very little respect for the law."

ASPCA was right to euthanize Oreo, the pit bull that survived a six-story fall, says PETA

After the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals made the controversial decision to euthanize Oreo, a pit bull that made headlines over the summer when she survived being thrown from a six-story Brooklyn, N.Y., building, many animal lovers were outraged.  Oreo had recovered from her physical injuries after the incident but, according to ASPCA staffers, had aggressive tendencies so severe that they felt they had no choice but to end her life. 

For some in the animal-rescue community, though, that explanation just wasn't good enough; after all, a New York sanctuary that specializes in cases of animal aggression, Pets Alive, had offered to take Oreo off the ASPCA's hands when the latter announced its decision to euthanize her. 

But the ASPCA wouldn't budge; according to the group's president, Ed Sayres, life in a sanctuary would still have been torture for Oreo because her behavior problems would have required almost complete isolation from both humans and other dogs.  "Her contact with the outside world would have been minimal at best," Sayres said in a statement. "Her quality of life would have been reduced to virtually nothing."

While Pets Alive supporters and others dispute Sayres' claim that Oreo could never have been rehabilitated -- Pets Alive staffers mince no words on the group's blog, calling Sayres "simply a coward" and Sayres and other ASPCA officials "arrogant, overpaid, unfeeling" -- the ASPCA president now has an unlikely ally in the form of PETA. 

Public outcry follows ASPCA decision to euthanize Oreo, 'miracle' dog who survived six-story fall

Over the summer, animal lovers were outraged over a shocking incident of animal cruelty: A man threw his 1-year-old female pit bull, Oreo, from the roof of the six-story Brooklyn, N.Y., building where he lived.

Fabian Henderson, 19, was charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, criminal trespassing and "overdriving, torturing and injuring animals," charges that could result in a sentence of up to two years in prison, according to the Brooklyn district attorney's office; he pleaded guilty to a felony animal-cruelty charge in October and will be sentenced Dec. 1. 

Officials of the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals told the New York Daily News that they'd first received a complaint that an animal was being beaten on the third floor of the building, where Henderson shares an apartment with family members, and shortly thereafter heard from witnesses who reported seeing Oreo thrown from the roof. (For her part, Henderson's mother told the Daily News that she believed her son was not guilty and that he was "basically a quiet person, good with animals.")

Oreo became something of a celebrity and recovered from the physical injuries that resulted from the fall, which included "multiple fractures in her two front legs, severe ligament damage, bruised lungs, a fractured rib, liver injury and internal bleeding," according to the indictment against Henderson. 

It's not just the chocolate, it's the xylitol: Halloween safety tips for pet owners

Timely reminder for pet parents: Most folks know that chocolate poses a big danger to dogs.  But fewer know that another common candy ingredient, xylitol (a sugar substitute often found in candy and chewing gum), can be almost, if not equally, dangerous.

"It doesn't take a whole lot [of xylitol], and the effects are so rapid that the window of opportunity to treat the dog is extremely small," Dana Farbman, a spokesperson for the ASPCA's Animal Poison Control Center, told USA Today a few years back, when word began to spread of the danger posed by xylitol.

Keeping dogs away from chocolate and xylitol is just one of the ASPCA's tips for keeping your pet safe around Halloween, when candy is ubiquitous, costumes are tempting and doorbells are ringing more often than usual.  It also advises keeping pets away from wires and cords associated with electrical Halloween decorations and exercising extreme caution if you choose to light your jack-o'-lanterns using candles instead of battery-powered alternatives.  And of course, keep pets that might be scared of strangers away from the front door when expecting Trick-or-Treaters (and make sure they're wearing their ID tags, just in case). 

More Halloween safety tips, as well as a list of the most common food items that can be hazardous to pets, at the ASPCA's website. Happy (and safe) partying!

-- Lindsay Barnett

Photo: Petey, a Yorkshire terrier, shows off his Wicked Witch costume during the fifth annual Times Square Dog Day Masquerade on Oct. 18.  Credit: Timothy A. Clary / AFP/Getty Images

Two of 85 dogs ousted from South Carolina Marine bases for aggressiveness

Most of the pit bulls, Rottweilers and canine-wolf mixes assessed at Marine bases in South Carolina this week get to keep their Marine dog tags.

Of 85 dogs from the three breeds checked by experts from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, only two were found to be so aggressive as to pose a danger to Marines and their families. Those two will have to leave base housing. Two others showed aggressive tendencies but one will work with a trainer and another will be neutered.

The Marines have banned the aggressive breeds, because their "dominant traits of aggression present an unreasonable risk to the health and safety of personnel."

Last year, a 3-year-old boy was fatally bitten by a pit bull at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. Owners who can show thorough assessments that their pets present no danger to humans or other pets may get waivers and keep them on bases through 2012.

The pets at the Parris Island Marine Recruit Depot, the Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort and the Beaufort Naval Hospital were assessed by experts from the ASPCA during three days of tests this week.