A Tempe, Arizona man has been arrested and faces charges of felony animal cruelty for severely beating his  three-month-old puppy with a metal rod. A neighbor reported hearing sounds resembling an animal in distress since November, but couldn’t pinpoint the location until this week when she located which apartment a puppy was howling in distress.

According to Channel12News, police arrested Shundong Hu, 21, on Wednesday. The woman told police she witnessed Hu striking the Golden retriever puppy repeatedly with a metal rod while it remained in a metal cage. The pup suffered severe injuries including multiple skull and cheek fractures, lacerations, a broken tooth, wounds to his head and nose and swelling of both eyes.

When police searched Hu’s apartment on Wednesday, they also found two cats – both had appeared to have been abused also. The cats were removed from the apartment and are currently being cared for with the puppy at the Arizona Humane Society.

In a press release, the Tempe Police Chief Sylvia M. Moir thanked the witness and 1st Pet Veterinary Hospital Arizona & Humane society for caring for the puppy. The puppy is expected to recover.

(Photos of puppy beaten with metal rod courtesy of Tempe Police Department)

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