Woman Pleads No contest For Dirty Shih Tzu

[matcom]

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REDWOOD CITY, Calif. --Like most dogs, Anita Tolentino's Shih Tzu got into his share of dirt. But that resulted in criminal charges against the owner when the high-maintenance breed was found wandering the streets with its long hair so filthy that it couldn't move properly.

Tolentino pleaded no contest Tuesday to neglecting the dog and was sentenced to one year of probation.

"This is one breed that you need to groom, but she just didn't care," said Peninsula Humane Society investigator Debi DeNardi. "The owners of most of these little breeds buy cute little jackets and fancy collars for them. They don't just throw them out in the backyard."

The pooch, named Benji, was found near Tolentino's Hillsborough home on June 7, 2005, by a neighbor, who took it to the humane society.

Benji's hair was so matted and encrusted with excrement that it formed a cast-like covering that prevented him from walking or running normally, or even turning his head, DeNardi said.

DeNardi said it took more than an hour for workers to remove more than 1 pound of matting from the dog's body to locate its identification tag.

"It's one of the worst grooming neglect cases I've seen in a long time," she said.

When confronted, Tolentino admitted that her toy pet had not been groomed in two years.

Benji later was adopted by a Pescadero family.

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2006/06/01/woman_pleads_no_contest_for_dirty_shih_tzu?mode=PF