Pueblo man charged after dog abuse video goes viral

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) - A Pueblo man is facing animal cruelty charges after a video surfaced of the man violently kicking a dog. The video went viral on social media, but was quickly taken down. KRDO13 obtained footage of the attack, which was captured by a home security system.

The video was initially posted anonymously. After seeing it, one Pueblo resident said she had to find a way to help the dog.

"It was just the most brutal thing I've seen in a long time," Angela Taylor said. After seeing the video on social media, she knew she had to do something.

"When I seen that video, something in my heart just clicked," Taylor said. "I knew that I was not gonna be able to sleep until I found that dog."

She posted messages to social media, hoping for help in locating the man.

"It was a very good response that I got. Everybody wanted to be involved and wanted to help in some way."

With help from the Pueblo community, Taylor tracked down the man. She also tracked down the dog, Toby, and reported it to the Humane Society. Toby is now safe, according to the Humane Society.

"There were people driving up and down, looking through alleys, trying to figure out where it was. Without the community effort and people using their voice for this voiceless animal, he would not have been rescued. It was a community effort. The whole community came together, and Toby is safe."

Taylor initially offered hundreds of dollars of her own money for help tracking down the dog. However, she says most people just wanted to help. Instead, Taylor gave the money to the Humane Society to help with Toby's care.

Animal Law Enforcement has not released the identity of the man in the video, but confirms he's been charged with animal cruelty.

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