Woman Admits She Cut Off Puppy's Ears

A 19 year-old Havertown woman says she cut off a pit bull puppy's ears. 

"The dog had to have immediate surgery to save its life. It was literally bleeding to death," said Dayna Villa of the Delaware County SPCA. 

At first, Kristina Murphy claimed she had found the puppy that way. She said she was cutting scabs off the dog's ears and accidentally cut them off. Things just didn't add up, so investigators visited the scene where the woman said she found the pup under the 69th Street bridge in Upper Darby last Wednesday. 

After talking with investigators at the Delaware County SPCA, she confessed to the heinous act.

The dog is now affectionately known as "Van Gogh."

"She did a serious butcher job on his ears," said Justine Calgiano of the SPCA. "The animal was probably screaming in pain. Clearly the woman isn't in the best psychological frame of mind."

Murphy took the dog to the Stoney Creek Veterinary Hospital in Morton after being advised to do so. The dog is now receiving foster care directly from a veterinarian.

Murphy had 10 additional animals living with her: 4 dogs, a turtle, an iguana, fish and exotic birds. She appeared to be able to care for all the animals.

"It was not a hording situation," said Calgiano. "She may even consider herself an animal lover. It's a sad situation, one that's hard to make sense of."

The 10 animals are now in the care of the SPCA and available for adoption. Some of the dogs had fleas. All the animals received shots and appropriate vet care. 

Because of their concerns, the SPCA is pushing for a psychological evaluation in addition to criminal charges. 

There have been numerous requests to adopt the injured pit bull. Adoption applications are no longer being taken for the pit bull pup at this time.


 Contact Sarah Glover at 610-668-5580, sarah.glover@nbcuni.com or follow @skyphoto on Twitter. 

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