A man who bit, bashed and choked his pet pig has copped a fine and a life ban from owning animals.
Pan the pig squealed and tried to escape during the prolonged and “bizarre” attack that amounted to torture, a West Australian court was told.
The 43-year-old man, who was convicted of animal cruelty on Feb. 14, told an RSPCA inspector he'd been trying to teach his pig to walk on a lead before the assault.
A witness said he heard the man yelling obscenities at the pig as he pushed the animal’s head into the ground, punched it, pulled it along by a metal choker chain, and bit its ear.
The offender said he bit Pan because the pig had bitten his nose.
Armadale Court Magistrate Matthew Holgate said the “bizarre, cruel and extended nature” of the man’s behaviour could “only be described as torture”.
“[It was] completely unjustified, irrational and cruel course of conduct over a period of time,” he said during sentencing.
RSPCA WA inspector Kylie Green said the man had chosen an ineffective and illegal way to try to train Pan.
“Pigs are highly intelligent animals who respond to rewards and kindness,” she said.
“The beating Pan took would have left him terrified and in pain - all from the person who was supposed to love and protect him.”
Pan has since made a full recovery and has been adopted.
The man was fined $5,000 (US$3,241) and permanently prohibited from being in charge of an animal for the offence in October 2021.
