Animal rights advocate reacts to alleged animal abuse video in Waterbury

News 8 | by: Zuri Hoffman | October 22, 2025 |

WATERBURY, Conn. (WTNH) — The Waterbury Police Department is investigating an alleged case of animal abuse caught on video.

The video reportedly shows a man punching a small black and white dachshund while she was tied to a pole before dragging her down the street. The dog, which is now in the city’s custody, has minor injuries but is doing well overall.

“I spoke to our animal control officers, and they say that the dog is happy and healthy and faring very well and is in very high spirits,” said Sgt. Joseph Morais from the Waterbury Police Department.

This case has outraged local animal rights advocates, including Zilla Cannamela, co-founder of Desmond’s Army Animal Law Advocates.

“What I saw was a man go up to this — what appeared to be a puppy at the time — and hammer punch down on the dog’s head for absolutely no reason,” Cannamela said. “It was vile, it was violent. I was disgusted.”

The department told News 8 they can’t say how they were able to locate the dog, as that is part of the investigation. Detectives are still looking for the man in the video, who Sgt. Morais said could face charges ranging from a misdemeanor to a felony.

“It’s incredibly important to catch this person, stop this person, and make this person aware that this is unacceptable,” Cannamela said. 

Waterbury Animal Control told News 8 it has been getting a lot of calls about the pup, but she isn’t up for adoption yet, as she is still healing from her injuries.