DA's office receives petition calling for animal abuse charges against Madera woman

MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Madera County District Attorney's Office is now preparing to review a police report about the case.

The injuries to this puppy's face are disturbing. The dog, now known as Harry, suffered deep cuts from rubber bands wrapped tightly around his muzzle. Staff members at the Madera Animal Shelter say he was starving, thirsty, and needed 50 stitches to repair the wounds after he was brought in by Ana Zarco on June 16th.

"It made me sick. I cried, and it looked like it was ripped off, and for someone not to see that or to blame a child, it made me angry," said Cynthia Peraza, dog owner.

Peraza is a local dog lover whose pug, Portia, has her own Instagram account with thousands of followers. She decided to use that notoriety to start an online petition calling for justice. More than 2,000 people from and around the world have signed it.

Monday morning, Peraza and her son delivered the petition to the District Attorney's Office.

We serve for everybody, justice for everybody, and I think getting their input is important to have. I think they understand too this doesn't tie our hands, it doesn't force the issue but it's the input, and that's appreciated," said Karen Mitchell, Supervising Deputy District Attorney.

Mitchell says she plans to prosecute the case, but detectives were still working on their report. "I'll review the case, determine what charges and go from there."

As for Harry, he's now recovering and is set to get his stitches out on Tuesday.

Action News tried contacting the woman who could face charges, Ana Zarco, on Monday, but we were not able to reach her. Madera Police detectives plan to deliver their report to the District Attorney's Office on Tuesday morning.