Arising from two separate incidents, two Bertie County residents have just been arraigned on cruelty-to-animals charges following PETA fieldworkers’ discovery of starving and emaciated dogs—including one who was already dead—confined helplessly to pens and on chains at two properties.

On October 27, a dog named Jalynn was found penned outdoors with only a plastic water container for shelter, covered in fleas, with intestinal parasites, and so weakened and starved that he couldn’t even stand up. He was rushed to a veterinary clinic for emergency care, where the veterinarian recommended euthanasia due to the severity of his condition. His owner, Carrie Cullipher, has been charged with cruelty to animals.

On November 15, at the residence of Anthony Little, PETA fieldworkers found the skeletal remains of a dog named Thor still attached to a chain so tangled and twisted that he would have had barely 3 inches to move when alive. He had died as a result of not being able to reach food, water, or shelter. Another dog on the property, Girl, was alive but severely emaciated and tethered by an extremely tangled cable. She was surrendered to the fieldworkers, who transferred her to a placement shelter partner, from which she was quickly adopted. Little was also charged with cruelty to animals.

“How many more starving and suffering dogs do county commissioners need to hear about before they take action to protect animals in Bertie County?” asks PETA Senior Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch. “PETA is calling on Bertie County commissioners to take the animal neglect epidemic seriously, prohibit keeping dogs chained outside unattended, and implement standards of care so that no other dogs suffer as Jalynn, Thor, and Girl did.”

Little and Cullipher were both arraigned on February 7. Little’s next court date is March 6, and Cullipher’s is March 27.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, or Instagram.