‘He had so many flies;’ Xenia residents express concerns over dog’s condition
A dog was taken to a care center in Xenia after a landlord was concerned about his health, but now the owner plans to press charges.
The day Brutus was brought to Halo, workers immediately called a vet because of the condition he was in.
When Regina Willen, Executive Director of Halo, was tipped off about Brutus by a landlord, he was covered in flies outside in the heat and had open soars on his ears.
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“He had so many flies on his ears that they were eating his flesh,” Willen said.
She knew he needed help.
“I told her ‘Do what you have to do, you know, get the people to sign him over,’ and that’s what she did,” Willen said.
The landlord was able to buy the dog and then hand him over to Halo with a signed document.
A vet checked Brutus and was glad he was brought in with the extreme temperatures outside.
“He’s a bulldog. He cannot live outside and with the heat that could be detrimental to him,” Willen said.
News Center 7′s Kayla McDermott went to the houses of where Brutus’s owners possibly live and was able to speak with one on the phone.
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They said Brutus has not been abused or neglected and claims Willen stole Brutus and wants him back, which Willen says a Xenia police officer made her do.
“She was going to press charges against me for taking stolen property,” Willen said.
An incident report from the Greene County Sheriff’s Office who was there on standby when Brutus was handed over states the owner advised that her boyfriend is the one who signed over the dog along with his sister so that it could get the treatment it needed. It also sated she signed something but did not realize it was going to result in her losing her dog.
Wellin now plans to file her own charges for neglect.
“I’m the innocent victim here. I should not be charged with anything. I just don’t understand it. I really do not understand it,” she said. “I feel like the police sided with the criminal.”
News Center 7 reached out to Xenia police for an interview but was told a supervisor was not available.
Even though News Center 7 spoke to the owner on the phone and she said Brutus is safe, the shelter does not know where he is and staff will be sending welfare checks to his known addresses.
