Man charged after allegedly hitting dog across snout with shovel in Preston County, ‘she can suffer’

MASONTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY) — A man has been charged after allegedly hitting his dog across the snout with a shovel in Preston County, causing “severe laceration.”

On July 12, deputies with the Preston County Sheriff’s Department received a call of a dog that had been wounded by its owner in the area of Plum Hill Terrace in Masontown, according to a criminal complaint.

Deputies were shown an image of “a small dog with a wound across its snout, blood all over its face and blood on its bedding,” as well as a text from James Johnston, 60, of Masontown, which said that he “gave her [the dog] a lesson” because she went to the bathroom in the house, deputies said.

The text showed that Johnston said the dog did not need medical care and that he stated “‘I’m not taking her nowhere she can suffer for all I give a s***’,” according to the complaint.

Deputies then went to Johnston’s home, and he told them “that he hit the dog with the shovel behind the couch,” according to the complaint. Deputies said they saw the dog to have “a severe laceration across her nose,” and next to a dog kennel in the house, deputies located a “short-handled shovel.”

Johnston “claimed he was going to take the dog to the vet,” but deputies said “the incident had occurred approximately 4 hours earlier” and Johnston “had just started to watch a movie,” according to the complaint.

Johnston has been charged with animal cruelty. He is being held in Tygart Valley Regional Jail on $5,000 bond.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBOY.com.