A Queens woman was arrested today for allegedly starving her one-and-a-half-year-old pit bull, Zellie.
Earlier this year, on March 26, Humane Law Enforcement agents with the ASPCA received a complaint of a dog tied to a tree with no food or water at a home in the Richmond Hill neighborhood of Queens.
When agents went to Shakisha Codling’s house, on 97th Avenue, they found Zellie collared with a padlock to a tree in the backyard, without access to food or water.
Codling, 31, relinquished ownership of the dog to the ASPCA, and she was taken to the ASPCA’s Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital on the Upper East Side. There, veterinarians determined that Zellie was starving and also dehydrated — she weighed 32 pounds when she was brought in.
After treatment, Zellie now weighs 48.5 pounds—a 51 percent increase. She is still recovering at the hospital and will eventually be made available for adoption.
Codling was charged with one count of misdemeanor animal cruelty. If convicted, she faces up to one year in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.
