Homeless man in a Los Angeles neighborhood kicked a 15-year-old Yorkie named Bart which left the pup with a brain injury unable to walk.
Michael Langman, 39, has been arrested after video appears to show him walking down the street and punting the animal several feet into the metal claw of a Bobcat tractor parked nearby.
‘He did a sidekick to my dog as if it was a soccer ball, and my dog just flew onto the metal plate in the street adjacent to our sidewalk. At the edge of the claw of the tractor, and he was rigid,’ said Laura Rosenfeld, Bart’s owner.
Good Samaritans rushed in to help, providing CPR to Bart and chasing after Langman who then hit one person over the head with a glass bottle, police said.
The elderly animal was rushed to the hospital where doctors uncovered his brain injury which has left him without the ability to stand.
Langman is facing charges of animal cruelty and assault with a deadly weapon.
The shocking assault took place on June 14 near the 800 block of Pacific Avenue in Venice, a neighborhood located along the Pacific Ocean.
According to the Los Angeles Police Department, officers were called to the scene for reports of animal cruelty in progress.
The photos and video – captured by Amor Amor Accessories – shows Langman walking down the sidewalk in front of the boardwalk business before he comes face to face with Bart.
The elderly pup appeared to be waiting for his owner who was just a few feet away when the vicious kick occurred.
Langman swings his foot and makes impact with the dog, sending Bart flying into the metal tractor claw.
The sickening footage then shows the man walking away as though nothing had happened, as Bart’s owner and others rush in to help her pet who was ‘not breathing.’
‘His tongue was hanging out of his mouth. There was no life in his eyes. There was no pulse so I asked bystanders to call 911 and began CPR,’ Rosenfeld said.
As Langman walked away, a group of people who had witnessed the attacked followed him and attempted to stop him from fleeing the scene.
One of the men who stepped in to restrain Langman was allegedly smashed over the head with a glass bottle.
Despite the injury, the men were able to hold Langman down until police arrived.
The dog was ultimately rushed to the emergency veterinarian and regained consciousness in the car but ‘kept moaning and seizing.’
‘He was also bleeding from his nose and mouth. It was truly one of the most heartbreaking things I’ve ever heard,’ wrote the organizer of a GoFundMe for Bart.
The fundraiser’s creator shared photos of the dog at the hospital with bandages around his legs and IV lines in his joints to keep him stable.
Along with the hospital photos, the fundraiser’s creator shared pictures of bills Rosenfeld received from the vet for the lifesaving measures.
One bill totaled more than $4,000 while another was nearly $3,000.
The GoFundMe, which had a goal of $10,000, has raised more than $20,000 in just a few days and the money will go toward Bart’s medical bills.
Doctors say they are unsure if Bart will ever walk again, however, Rosenfeld said.
Langman is now facing charges in both the attack on Bart and the assault of the man who attempted to restrain him at the scene.
He remains in custody without bail.
