Marco Zuluaga {Osceola County Sheriff)
A Coral Springs man was charged with animal cruelty for violently slamming his dog onto a concrete floor and balcony railing, authorities said Monday.
Marco Zuluaga, 28, inflicted the violence as punishment for his one-year-old Australian Shepherd, Lilly, urinating and defecating on a rug, according to the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office.
Lilly suffered minor injuries in the attack by her owner – including deep tissue bruising on her stomach – and received veterinary care, deputies said. She is expected to fully recover and will be placed in a new home.
In a press conference Monday, Sheriff Marcos Lopez said Zuluaga’s arrest happened after deputies responded to a complaint of animal abuse at the Jamison Loop Apartments in Kissimmee on the morning of Dec. 26.
Management at the property gave deputies surveillance video with graphic footage of the abuse, which happened around 8:30 a.m.
The video showed a man deputies identified as Zuluaga carrying Lilly through the property; the dog clothed in a Christmas sweater.
A sound is heard off-camera as deputies say Zuluaga – now out of the frame – slams the helpless dog into a third-floor balcony railing, apparently considering whether to toss it toward the ground, authorities said.
Zuluaga was allegedly caught on camera a short time later swinging Lilly violently onto the concrete. He used so much force that the dog appeared to bounce off the concrete, crying out in pain before running off, according to the sheriff’s office.
“The amount of force he uses is just disgusting, disturbing, and unacceptable, and it’s a miracle that he didn’t kill that dog,” Lopez, the sheriff, said Monday. “It breaks our heart to see this. Animals have feelings and they should never be treated like this. Nobody should be treated like this.”
“When we asked Mr. Zuluaga why he did this, he said that he did it because ‘She pooped and peed on the rug.’ Really? Come on man, this is horrible,” Lopez added. “This kind of thing will not be tolerated.
Deputies said they identified Zuluaga as the abuser through use of video evidence and records. They said he’d been visiting the apartment property with his dog over the holidays to see a family member.
The alleged animal abuser was booked into the Osceola County Jail and ordered held on a $5,000 bond. A judge ordered that he have no contact with animals, deputies said.
“Lilly will be safe from harm and she will never return to that monster,” Lopez said.
Lilly will be adopted as part of a re-homing process that is already underway, according to the sheriff.
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