Raymond Hutchinson: Owner sentenced after cable-tying dog’s muzzle

A Melbourne dog owner who cable-tied his dog’s muzzle shut to stop it barking at kids also left him hanging by his collar from a fence.

A Kealba man has been sentenced on animal cruelty charges after cable-tying his three-year-old dog’s muzzle shut.

Raymond Hutchinson, 52, faced the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to two counts of committing an act of animal cruelty.

The court heard an investigation into the incident was launched by the RSPCA after his Sarplaninac, Kai, was found hanging by his collar from a fence on December 17, 2019.

The dog had been left tethered in Hutchinson’s backyard and tried to escape after becoming “distressed”.

He was brought by Brimbank Council officers to a vet clinic where it was discovered his muzzle had been cable-tied shut with pressure sores and wounds on his muzzle.

RSPCA vet Dr Rebecca Falconer found Kai had suffered from malnutrition and was emaciated.

“Securing a dog’s muzzle shut with cable ties is a completely inappropriate thing to do as this prevents normal behaviour and risks dehydration and heatstroke,” she wrote.

“The wounds present on his nose suggested to me that the cable ties were either being used for extended periods of time – likely more than a few hours at a time – or on a regular basis.”

Hutchinson said he had adopted Kai about six months prior and had cable-tied his mouth shut as “kids in the school next door hit balls into the fence and the dog barks all day”.

He surrendered the dog to Brimbank City Council.

In court, Hutchinson was fined $2000 and banned from being in charge of a dog for two years.