Man Accused Of Abusing Dog Speaks Out

A Las Cruces man accused of extreme animal cruelty last week is speaking out about the incident.

Cody Michael Carmack, 20, admitted he hurt an 8-month-old terrier so bad that the dog had to have a back leg amputated.

Carmack said he feels bad, but also feels his actions were justified.

“I was aggravated,” Carmack said. “He got in my way and I got so frustrated.”

Carmack became enraged to the point that he took it out on a dog, he said.

“I was trying to clean and all that, and I put it in the bedroom. Then that happened. But there was no witness to prove it,” Carmack said.

But the police report gives a different account. It states that Carmack was fighting with a woman inside his apartment on Foster Street when he took out his frustration on her puppy.

The woman told police, according to the report, that Carmack “kicked the dog, picked it up and then slammed it against the metal part of a bed.”

“Yeah because it got in my way,” Carmack said. “I was in pain when it happened.”

The terrier, a dog named Thor, is now learning to walk with three legs.

His new owner says the pup’s back leg was broken in so many places that a veterinarian had no choice but to amputate.

“I feel bad that it had to get amputated,” Carmack said. “I like dogs but I won’t hurt mine.”

Carmack said he feels responsible for Thor’s condition.

“Yeah but there’s no witness to prove it,” Carmack said.

According to the police report, an officer on the scene advised a second officer that Carmack has had many encounters with police and had mental problems in the past.

Thor is doing much better and recovering at home with his new owner.