COLUMBIA, Missouri (KOMU) — A Columbia man is accused of amputating the wing of a seagull he brought home from Florida.
Aaron Lacey, 48, faces charges of felony animal abuse, misdemeanor animal abuse and violating an ordinance by the county commission.
According to a probable cause statement, a house sitter called animal control to Lacey’s house to report of a pelican with its leg stuck in a cage.
When animal control arrived at the house, they found that the pelican was actually a seagull, according to the probable cause statement. The seagull’s left wing had been completely removed and the bird was hanging upside down in the cage.
Officers found that the animal was very hungry and thirsty, had been living in its own feces, and had bird lice. They also noticed that the wound on the bird was infected, and the bone was exposed.
The seagull was taken to raptor rehab where it was deemed that it could not be saved and should be euthanized.
Officers received a call from Lacey and an unidentified woman saying that they brought the seagull from the Gulf of Mexico after finding it with a broken wing.
According to court documents, Lacey called local rehabs and veterinarians, who told him to either leave it alone or bring it in to be humanely euthanized. Lacey and the woman said they didn’t feel the seagull should be euthanized, so they amputated the wing with scissors and a torch, without giving the bird any pain medicine or antibiotics.
When animal control told Lacey and the woman that they could not have the bird back, they threatened to kill all the pets of the animal control officer, according to the court documents.
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