Pug Lovers Doggedly Seek Answers
For what it’s worth, and that may not be much, I spoke to a woman the other day who identified herself as a psychic. She said she had called the newspaper because she felt the need to convey an important message she had received from “a great soul.”
The message, she explained, had come to her from Pal the pug, the canine whose gruesome death has inspired such a cause celebre among certain celebrities and animal lovers.
Pal, she said, had given her some good news: His death was not the result of malice--that, contrary to suspicions, he was not the victim of some sort of torture. Pal, she said, had not fully explained the mystery of his death but simply provided an important part of the puzzle--important because it might ease the pain of those who grieve for Pal.
The professed psychic requested anonymity. Whatever her reasons, she is wise, I think, to want to keep her name out of the newspaper. The people determined to avenge Pal’s death may not appreciate her contribution to the cause, so strong is their conviction that this pug was the victim of evil.
As for who or what killed Pal, I don’t have a strong opinion. To me, the photos of Pal’s mutilated carcass don’t look like something a coyote might have done, but then I’m not an expert. The problem here isn’t only that the experts disagree, but they don’t seem to be talking to each other.
This much I do know:
The first veterinarian to examine Pal was Dr. Melvin Richkind, who examined the pug April 8 when he was still alive and in shock, having been found beneath a bush outside his owner’s Encino home with a large area of hide missing. Richkind concluded that the wounds were caused by someone with “a very sharp knife.”
The city’s Department of Animal Regulation then conducted a necropsy. Exactly why with animals it’s called a necropsy and with humans the term is autopsy is something Peter Persic, the department’s spokesman, couldn’t explain. At any rate, both Dr. Dena Magiamele, chief veterinarian, and a private veterinarian retained to examine Pal blamed the dog’s wounds on a coyote attack.
Next came two more vets who performed necropsies at the behest of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in Los Angeles. Both Dr. Brad Brunskill and Dr. Chris Kauble found that Pal “was indeed a victim of human cruelty and not coyote attack.”
This left the Department of Animal Regulation and the SPCA practically growling at each other. The SPCA, Persic said Friday, had declined requests to provide copies of its necropsy reports for review. “It’s very unusual for people who are making allegations of animal cruelty to be so uncooperative with the investigating agency,” he said.
SPCA Executive Director Madeline Bernstein seems more inclined to work through the city attorney’s office. “I think we all need to get together to share information,” Bernstein said. Bringing the city attorney into the case, she suggested, would help protect the evidence and thus the chances of conviction should the perpetrator be caught--assuming it’s a human.
As a matter of veterinary science, Pal’s demise is clearly one for the books. But what’s really put this dead dog on the media map is the passion of pug lovers, and especially pug lovers in Hollywood. The passion has inspired a bounty, City Hall news conferences and a candlelight vigil.
At last count, the reward money for the arrest and conviction of Pal’s killer amounted to $21,000. This included $5,000 from actor Mickey Rourke, $1,000 from actor Peter Berg (of “Chicago Hope”) and a $10,000 anonymous donation. A motion by City Councilman Nate Holden that would have taxpayers add $5,000 to the reward is under consideration.
Why should L.A., a city where too many people die horrible deaths, put a bounty on a dog killer when there’s no consensus that the killer is even human?
“These dogs are my family,” actress Carole Kane told the City Council on Tuesday. “I’m here to speak because my family can’t speak for itself.”
Kane is an appealing actress perhaps best known for her role as Latka’s wife in the old sitcom “Taxi.” But some observers cringed when she compared Pal’s death to the slaying of the 3-year-old girl whose family drove into gang turf in Cypress Park in 1995.
“What happened to this dog is like what happened to the little girl who got shot in the car,” she said. “It was a barbaric act.”
Another activist, Sherrie Woodbury of Little Angels Pug Rescue, shared with the City Council a letter she had written:
Dear Pal,
If there is a Heaven--one has to wonder after what happened to you--we know that Pugs, of all God’s creatures, are welcomed there with open arms. Pugs, after all, are the sweetest, most gentle, loving and affectionate little beings.
Pugs like you were created to cuddle on the couch, snuggle under the covers and give big sloppy kisses. Pugs like you don’t have a mean bone in your little bodies. Pugs like you pose no threat to anybody. We’re still having trouble understanding how someone could attack you so coldly and cruelly. . . .
People who address a letter to a dead dog may well consider the possibility that the dead dog might find a way of responding. The professed psychic who told me she’s heard from Pal has also contacted the SPCA, and the SPCA confirms this. My impression is that she is as sincere and well-meaning as people who are convinced that Pal was the victim of torture.
The woman told me that, as a dog lover herself, a story in The Times about poor Pal had left her sobbing and sobbing. It was then, she said, that she heard Pal’s voice.
“What he said to me point-blank was: ‘They wanted me for dinner.’ ”
So it was coyotes then?
According to the woman, Pal didn’t say; he merely reported that his killer or killers weren’t motivated by malice but just wanted him for food. Maybe it was a coyote, maybe not. It isn’t only different species that have different tastes, but different people. Some Americans keep rabbits as pets, some Americans like their flavor. Here in multicultural California, the SPCA told me, only a few years have passed since the eating of dogs and cats became a felony.
Scott Harris’ column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Readers may write to Harris at the Times Valley Edition, 20000 Prairie St., Chatsworth, CA 91311, or via e-mail at scott.harris@latimes.com Please include a phone number.
