Severely beaten dog found dead in Flin Flon

The manager of the SPCA in Flin Flon made a disturbing discovery in the small northern Manitoba city on Monday evening. 

Carmen Ward and her husband were out for walk with their dogs on the edge of town when they found what they first thought was a dead cat.

After a closer look, they realized it was a small, thin chihuahua, beaten so badly that its eyes had come out of its skull and its intestines were pushed out of its small body.

"I was just like, 'I can't believe I found this poor dog,' " said Ward, the manager of the Flin Flon, Creighton and area SPCA. "I was more ashamed at the people that would do this.

"It was horrible."

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Ward believes the dog was killed not long before she and her husband arrived. The dog's remains hadn't been touched by birds or other animals and there was fresh blood on both the dog and log that she suspects was used to beat it.

She wrapped the small dog up in a blanket and wrote a post on the SPCA's Facebook page seeking information. 

"I've seen such horrible things in my years of rescue that of course it upset me," Ward said. "I know a few of my co-workers were in tears when I showed them the photo."

Local residents angry 

The post has been seen more than 20,000 times, Ward said, and has sparked a lot of anger locally from people wondering who would do such a thing to a small dog. So far, no leads have come in as to who is responsible. 

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"If this dog was sick or needed a new home, there's so many other options than throwing a huge log on a poor little Chihuahua's head."

Ward hopes the discovery raises awareness about the need for stricter animal cruelty laws in Manitoba.

People on Facebook and elsewhere have expressed surprise that this happened, but the Flin Flon-Creighton SPCA deals with one or two cruelty cases as severe as this in a typical year, and less severe animal cruelty cases on a regular basis, she said. 

Earlier this year, a puppy was found in a dumpster in the city, she said. 

"This happens a lot," she said. "I think this is a good start for us to get some action going around our area." 

Ward also hopes it encourages people to speak up. 

"People need to report anything that is suspicious," she said. "Make that call. Don't turn your head. Definitely voice your concern."

Ward said she is notifying both the provincial chief veterinary office and the RCMP about the dog she found on Monday evening. 

Flin Flon is a city of fewer than 5,000 people 630 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg along the Manitoba-Saskatchewan border.