A small, 15-year-old dog remains hospitalized in critical condition Saturday after a man believed homeless kicked him so hard that he flew into the metal claw of a tractor on a Venice street.
The attack occurred about 3:05 p.m. Wednesday at an undisclosed Venice location, according to Laura Valdivia, who set up a GoFundMe account to help her neighbor, the Yorkshire terrier’s owner, Laura Michele Rosenfeld, with growing veterinary bills.
A former firefighter on vacation with her son helped revive the dog named Bart but the animal suffered what appeared to be seizures after he resumed breathing, Valdivia said.
At last report, Bart had stabilized but was unable to stand on his own, she said. He reportedly suffered a traumatic brain injury.
The GoFundMe appeal had raised $11,375 as of Saturday evening, topping its $10,000 goal.
The man accused of kicking Bart was also accused of hitting a victim over the head with a glass bottle on Wednesday, Los Angeles Police Officer Drake Madison told City News Service.
“Multiple witnesses chased the suspect down and held him until police arrived and took him into custody,” Madison said. Thirty-nine-year-old Michael Langman was booked for suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, and officers located footage of the dog being kicked, and entered it into evidence.
Langman was being held without bail at the sheriff’s Inmate Reception Center, according to sheriff’s inmate records.