This is pretty unbelievable. Antonio Carneiro, a (now) former Massachusetts K-9 officer, actually starved Nitro, his Belgian Malinois to death.  Nitro was his personal pet, not his K-9 partner. The dog was found dead in a cage in Carneiro’s backyard, weighing in at a ridiculous 25 pounds.

A Belgian Malinois is quite similar to a German Shepherd, so you can imagine that at 25-pounds he was a pretty sad sight. If you care to look at a photo of Nitro, click <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2011/05/25/2011-05-25_massachusetts_cop_antonio_carneiro_gets_18_months_in_prison_for_starving_his_dog.html?print=1&amp;page=all">here</a> to get to the NY Daily News website. Be prepared to get very angry. According to the American Kennel Club, a <a href="http://www.akc.org/breeds/belgian_malinois/"><span style="color: #0000ff;">Belgian Mailnois</span></a> is <em>“intelligent and trainable, the Belgian Malinois possesses a strong desire to work and is happiest with regular activity and a job to do. A relatively easy keeper due to their medium size and short coat, this confident breed loves their families, but may be somewhat reserved with strangers. They are naturally protective of their owners without being overly aggressive.”</em>

Hmm, “naturally protective of their owners.” Too bad the owner didn’t reciprocate.

Why Antonio Carneiro would choose a career path in which he would work with animals, when he obviously does not care a whit about dogs is beyond my understanding. How he could go home every day and watch this poor creature starve to death, I don’t know. The dog had to have been barking quite a bit, before he lost all of his strength and gave up that is. It is surprising that neighbors didn’t notice, but perhaps he has a privacy fence around his yard.

Carneiro was originally charged in 2009, so it is good to know that Nitro finally has his justice!

Photo credit: flickr/Svadilifari