SHEEP-DOG KILLED

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 611, 13 March 1929, Page 11

SHEEP-DOG KILLED

CRUELTY ALLEGED AGAINST FARMER APPEAL AGAINST CONVICTION (Special to THE SUN) HAMILTON, To-day. Appealing against a conviction in the Te Kuiti Magistrate’s Court for alleged cruelty to a dog, Bruce Johnstone, a farmer, of Puketutu, appeared in the Supreme Court at Hamilton before Mr. Justice Blair yesterday. The prosecutor in the lower court, William John Leinwebber, appeared as respondent. A collie dog owned by respondent had been chased off their father’s farm by Bruce Johnstone and his brother Wallace, and had then been killed. Leinwebber told the police that the dog had been tortured to death, and Bruce Johnstone was convicted in the Magistrate’s Court of cruelty, while his brother Wallace was acquitted. Leinwebber gave evidence that on October 27 he had unchainejl the dog. A few minutes later he heard four shots, and saw the two Johnstones following the dog with guns in their hands. One of them stopped, and took careful aim at the dog, which had run into a swamp out of witness’s sight. He fired, and there was a yelp. Two of the Johnstones’ dogs then bailed the collie up against a fence, and Bruce began to hit it on the head with the butt of his rifle. After giving the animal several blows on the head, he struck it under the jaw, and it collapsed. When Wallace saw that the last blow had snapped his brother’s rifle-butt, he shot the dog through the head.

Cross-examined, witness denied that he had been warned that the dog was interfering with the Johnstones’ sheep. He described an alleged assault on him by one of the Johnstone family. Mr. R. A. Singer, for the appellant, said he would call witnesses to prove that the dog had been interfering with sheep on the Johnstones’ farm, and that when the first shot struck the dog it was on appellant’s property. He argued that it was appellant’s duty to kill the dog. which had been seriously wounded. He said it would be necessary to prove deliberate cruelty before the conviction could be upheld. Bruce Johnstone said that he had seen respondent’s dog among the sheep once before, and that he had often been told that it had interfered with them. When his dogs heard the shots, they followed the wounded animal of their own accord. It was untrue that he had clubbed the dog\ for his first blow hit the ground, and the rifle-butt snapped when the last shot was fired. Judgment was reserved.