Florida Keys woman faces animal cruelty charge after being accused of drowning puppy
A Florida Keys woman was jailed on an animal cruelty charge after the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office said she intentionally drowned her puppy.
Delaine Abee Lowry, 72, told arresting deputies that she thought the 6- to 10-month old miniature schnauzer was going to kill her, so she killed it first, according to the sheriff’s office.
Lowry, of Big Pine Key, was arrested Monday and being held in county jail on a bond of $35,000 as of Tuesday night.
Deputies were called to the house on Palmetto Drive when a neighbor called them after Lowry came to his home and asked him if she could bury the dog in his yard, said Adam Linhardt, sheriff’s office spokesman.
Deputies found the dog in a plastic grocery bag on Lowry’s property, Linhardt said, adding that deputies also found a tub filled with water surrounded by wet dirt.
Deputies contacted the SPCA, according to the sheriff’s office. A necropsy is pending.
“This is a deeply disturbing case. Animal cruelty will not be tolerated in our community,” Sheriff Rick Ramsay said in a statement. “I want to thank the Deputies who acted quickly as well as our friends with the SPCA who assisted in this case.”
