Unclaimed reward money in animal abuse case to help rescue groups

Animal rights advocates in southern Alberta say a horrific case of animal abuse has increased public awareness and will help save other animals in the future.

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A $70,000 reward was raised by the Calgary Animal Abuse Fund a year ago after a starved dog andcat were founda week apart. The husky had tape around its muzzle and the nine-month-old kittenhad green painter's tape covering most of its face.

An examination at a veterinarian's office determined the dog had suffered chronicmalnourishmentbefore its death. The cat had been strangled and had injuries to its head, tail and hind limbs.

NicolinoCamardiwas charged last May and has pleaded guilty to animal cruelty. He remains in jail as he waits for the results of a psychiatric exam before he is sentenced Feb. 26.

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Since the Calgary Humane Society was able to put together a case againstCamardiwithout public tips, the reward money went unclaimed.

It was distributed to three different organizations Thursday:Calgary Humane Society,Four Feet Companion Foundation and Canadian Federation of Humane Societies.

'Step in the right direction'

Camardiwill have been in custody almost nine months by the time he is sentenced.

Brad Nichols, manager of cruelty investigations for the Calgary HumaneSociety, said the amount of time Camardi has already been behind bars is a step in the right direction.

"It's nice to see someone who has committed such a horrific animal cruelty act incarcerated for such a long period," Nichols said.

"I'd be hard pressed to even find another case where someone was even sentenced to that amount of incarceration time, so I think we're actually looking at something precedent-setting here."

Silver lining

The Calgary Humane Society says it will use $20,000 from the reward fund for equipment, technology and training to investigate cases of animal cruelty.

Greg Habstritt from the company Vets To Go, which organized the reward fund, said he is glad something positive came from the dog and cat's plight.

"The money is definitely a silver lining, because it's actually going to go to help a lot of animals and make a big difference," he said.

"The other part of it isit brings awareness to this issue. These things are happening all the time and I think a lot of people don't realize how significant this problem is."

Animal cruelty prosecution centre

Some of the money from the reward fund will be used by the Canadian Federation of Humane Societiesto help run a national group that will aid in prosecuting animal abusers.

"We have been working over the last year and a half with prosecutors from across the country, with humane societies,SPCAsand the veterinary community to design the National Centre for the Prosecution of Animal Cruelty," CEO Barbara Cartwright said Thursday.

"It has allowed us to create state-of-the-art materials to launch the only case law database in the country that will be regularly updated, so we put at the fingertips of prosecutors the materials and resources they need in order to vigorously prosecute animal cruelty."

Cartwright said the program will bring together Crown prosecutorswho will learn from each other and act as animal cruelty resource experts in their provinces. She hopes it will lead to a greater number of animal cruelty convictions and new precedents.