A Glencoe man whose dog was seized in a drug raid was ordered Tuesday to stand trial on a charge of animal cruelty for his alleged failure to provide necessary food, drink, shelter or veterinary care to his pet.
John Jacob Shanks, 20, remains free on $5,000 bail pending his trial court arraignment on Aug. 15 before Payne County District Judge Donald Worthington. If convicted of animal cruelty, Shanks could be given as much as a five-year prison term.
Glencoe Police Sgt. Richard Sterling testified Tuesday that while he was serving a search warrant for marijuana and drug paraphernalia at a residence on Shell Street on March 8, he saw a dog "in really bad shape," chained to a stake east of the house.
"The dog was very timid. It had a very sunken stomach.
"You could clearly see the ribs.
"It was hollowed around the hips," Sterling testified during Tuesday's preliminary hearing.
"There was no food or water," for the dog, Sterling testified.
"It was a pretty warm day," Sterling testified. He said that the only bowl he saw had a hole in it.
Sterling said that Shanks admitted he owned the dog, which he had at least since August of the previous year.
"He said he was busy and didn't have time to take care of it.
"He said he'd been rough with it. He said he had kicked and choked the dog," Sterling testified.
Sterling seized the dog and took it to the Oklahoma State Veterinary Hospital that night for treatment, he testified.
After court recessed, Sterling said that the dog probably weighed about 40 pounds then and now is up to 50 or 55 pounds.
Payne County prosecutor Tom Lee described the dog as healthy now and in foster care in Glencoe by agreement of the parties.
Ricky Scott Stokes testified that at the time of the drug raid, he had been living with Shanks for several months and paying him rent.
"There would be times he'd kick the dog. He choked her sometimes. Lot of times, it'd get abused," Stokes testified.
Stokes said, "When I'd get home, if he wasn't there, I'd feed and water the dog." Stokes said "lots of days I'd work 8 to 16 hours a day."
Stokes said that he had seen Shanks feed the dog "a couple times." The dog was normally fed inside the house, Stokes said.
"We had a little bed for it. Sometimes, he'd just go there and kick it. Sometimes, he'd strangle it," Stokes testified.
Veterinarian Kelci Porter testified Tuesday that she took care of the female hound mix, named Jasmine, for about three weeks at the OSU Veterinary Hospital.
She said that the dog had "some loss of muscle mass," and no fat. "You could see bony protrudence from across the room," the veterinarian said. The dog had "a very heavy burden of whipworms and hookworms," she testified.
In addition to de-worming several times, the dog was given a prescription diet high in calories, the veterinarian testified.
Porter described the dog as "fearful and nervous," but gradually during the three-week period became more responsive at the veterinary hospital.
"I have found that dogs who are physically abused tend to react more strongly to raised arms," so the staff had to get down on the dog's level, the veterinarian testified.
