In a case that has horrified SPCA enforcement officials, Anderson Joe and Melissa Tooshley of Duncan have been charged with animal cruelty after a dog seized from their care died from severe neglect.

BC SPCA special constables seized the emaciated, chained dog in critical distress on Feb. 16.

鈥淭his is one of the most profoundly shocking and disturbing cases of abuse we have ever witnessed,鈥� said Marcie Moriarty, chief prevention and enforcement officer for the BC SPCA. 鈥淲e received a report of a dog in distress and when the constables arrived at the property they found a medium-sized brown dog on a tether that was only a few inches long, standing in a large pile of mud and feces.鈥�

鈥淎s they got closer there was an overpowering stench and they realized that, not only was the dog severely emaciated, but his collar was deeply embedded into his neck, causing massive infection,鈥� she said.

Moriarty adds that the dog鈥檚 head was swollen to two to three times its normal size.

鈥淭he constables used bolt cutters to free the dog and immediately rushed him to an emergency veterinary clinic,鈥� says Moriarty. 鈥淭he wound from the embedded collar exposed the dog鈥檚 trachea and jugular vein 鈥� it was horrific.鈥�

Despite extensive emergency treatment and around-the-clock care, the dog succumbed to his critical condition two days later, the SPCA reported.

鈥淭his kind of appalling neglect and cruelty is sickening and absolutely unacceptable in our society,鈥� says Moriarty.

If convicted, Joe and Tooshley face a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison, a $10,000 fine and up to a lifetime ban on owning animals.