Kaua'i man gets 40 days for abandoning dogs
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau
LIHU'E, Kaua'i — A Makaweli man convicted of abandoning five dogs to parasites and starvation after he moved out of his home will spend 40 days in jail and 300 hours of community service at the Kaua'i Humane Society.
Photos courtesy KauaÎi Humane Society
Al Kanahele pleaded no contest to three petty misdemeanor counts of animal desertion and two misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty and was sentenced Friday. Humane society and prosecutors said they believe it was the first successful prosecution of an animal desertion case in Hawai'i.
Maka, a male chocolate labrador/pitbull mix, was one of five dogs abandoned at a Makaweli home.
Kaua'i Humane Society Director Rebecca Rhoades, a veterinarian, said the condition of the animals when humane society officers went to retrieve them in July was "horrific."
"This was a case of total disregard for life," Rhoades said.
Three Labrador mixes and an adult heeler were found chained in the yard of the abandoned plantation camp house owned by Gay & Robinson in Makaweli, in the Waimea area. The heeler's chain was embedded in its neck. An adult rottweiler was locked in a cage made of a wire-enclosed pickup truck bed. There were piles of feces all around. Rhoades said that all five dogs were starving, infested with ticks and suffering from sarcoptic mange, also called scabies.
Only one of the animals had water. It was "green and not potable," she said.
Kanahele's attorney, Deputy Public Defender Erick Moon, said Kanahele told him he had been building a kennel for the dogs at his new home and intended to move them when it was complete. Kanahele said he believed his wife and children were feeding the dogs when he was unable to, but that it appeared this was not happening. On some days, because of his work schedule, he could feed the animals only at night, and did not notice their condition in the dark, Moon said.
Rhoades challenged the suggestion that Kanahele was feeding his animals, saying the dogs were starving to death.
"It was very obvious that he wasn't," she said.
A neighbor had been throwing food over the fence to try to help, but it was insufficient, she said.
Neighbors and Gay & Robinson alerted the humane society to the dogs' condition.
The agency rehabilitated the dogs at its Kipu shelter and found homes for three of them, all Labrador mixes. The Rottweiler and heeler remained aggressive, could not be socialized and were destroyed, Rhoades said.
One of the survivors, a chocolate Labrador-pitbull mix named Maka, was so weak when it was picked up that it could not fully raise its head. A month later after having been fed and treated for parasites, it had filled out and its skin was clear.
In addition to the jail term and community service, Lihu'e District Court Judge Gerald Matsunaga ordered Kanahele to pay fees of $250.
Deputy Prosecutor Rosa Flores said Kanahele also was placed on probation for one year, during which time he is prohibited from owning pets. He will be required to give up two dogs living with his family now.
Rhoades said an owner who can no longer care for animals can call the humane society and have them picked up at no charge, but those who simply abandon their pets will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
"We'll go take the dogs, no questions asked. Our most important job is to protect animals from suffering," she said.
Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 245-3074.
