Jena Malone Chases Dog-Beating Suspect And Helps Recover Badly Injured Pooch
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A dog rescued by “Hunger Games” actor Jena Malone while it was being beaten suffered another setback, a friend of the owner said Thursday.
“Champ has more issues. he has a fracture in his chest.. they are needing to make sure [he’s] able to have surgery tomorow,” wrote the organizer of a GoFundMe page for the dog.
On Twitter Wednesday, Malone, who recently had a recurring role on Amazon’s “Goliath,” recounted her pursuit of a man she saw kicking and choking the leashed dog in Hollywood. Malone first yelled at him from her car to stop, then chased him on foot. She was joined by five men in the pursuit of the man with the battered pup, she wrote. She then returned to her car and drove to where the men surrounded the suspect, who no longer had the dog.
A fight had ensued between the man and the rescuers as they attempted to wrest the animal from him, but Malone said she did not see it. Video released by NBC Los Angeles (watch it below) showed the men beating the suspect without the dog as well.
Police arrived, Malone said, and after she took possession of the dog she waited for another officer to take the animal to the hospital.
“I can’t imagine the level of torture it had suffered to this point,” she wrote.
According to NBC Los Angeles, the LAPD arrested the man for suspected animal cruelty but did not charge the group that “attacked the man.”
The LAPD did not immediately return HuffPost’s request for comment.
Champ, a small pooch with fluffy white hair, had been missing for five days and has been reunited with owner Kelly McKinney. He was already reported to have broken ribs and a hind leg broken in two places on the GoFundMe page.
This was really scary. I saw a man kicking repeatedly a small dog on the sunset, yanking him up in the air and absolutely choking the dog. I yelled at him to stop from my car but he wouldn’t. I got out of my car to try and get the dog but he started running. ( thread) https://t.co/3ftY18M3Ap
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
So I started chasing him. I saw other people watching on the street upset , as they must have seen the same abhorrent behavior I witnessed , so I tried to signal a man in an orange vest to run with me to chase him. https://t.co/3ftY194cOx
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
Cause at that point I really didn’t think I was going to be able to get the dog back by myself. After another block of chasing him down I looked back and there were 5 other men behind me pursuing him. Which felt like a miracle. https://t.co/3ftY18M3Ap
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
So at this point I held back and let them take the lead as I have no business trying to restrain a full grown man. I went back to get my car( it was still running ) and drove to see if they caught him. https://t.co/3ftY18M3Ap
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
6 blocks down from where the chase began a big group had gathered and it look like the man no longer had the dog. So I pulled over to make sure that dog was going to be cared for. I didn’t see the brawl but I was told that the man did not give up the dog without a fight. https://t.co/3ftY18M3Ap
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
and this is the tail end of a heated fight that ensued. The cops came and took the guy. I waited with dog til another cop came to take them to the hospital. The dog was covered in filth and looked like it had been not taken care of for months https://t.co/3ftY18M3Ap
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
After coming out of the hospital , the dog is ok but has a fractured rib , bone breaks in it’s hind legs and another fracture in its right paw. It was absolutely horrific seeing an animal treated this way. https://t.co/3ftY18M3Ap
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
I’m sorry that it ended in a brawl but the dog was going to die. No question. I can’t imagine the level of torture it had suffered until this point. And now it’s safe in a hospital. Still no word on its owner. https://t.co/3ftY18M3Ap
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
Also because it important to know , I saw the man get arrested and he wasn’t bleeding and seemed coherent after this filmed altercation. https://t.co/3ftY18M3Ap
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
Update: the dog was chipped and back with his owner. The dog had been missing for a week. His name is champion and is happily out of hospital and with his owner. Watch out for the go fund me link soon. His multiple surgeries will be a lot for the owner to take care of alone
— Jena Malone (@MaloneJena) April 6, 2022
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.