A 59-year-old Morgan Hill man is in custody after police said he dragged his "half-dead" cancer-stricken dog across the pavement.
Officers were called to a sidewalk on Monterey Road and Second Street at 3:40 p.m. Tuesday after a witness reported he saw a man pulling the dog while it was lying on its side.
When officers got there they thought the dog was dead and ordered its' owner, Kevin Fifield to stop.
Fifield told officers that it was none of their business, picked up the dog and walked away.
One of the officers then got in front of Fifield and told him to stop, but Fifield clenched his fist and told the officer he would kill him, police said. Officers grabbed Fifield and removed the dog from his grasp. After a brief struggle, Fifield was taken into custody.
Fifield's 11-year-old dog, Snowflake, went into seizures while officers were at the scene and was taken to a local veterinarian to be treated.
The dog's paws had been bleeding because its claws were ground down from being dragged on the pavement and concrete, police said.
Snowflake also had cancer and a high fever. The dog is currently in serious condition. His caregivers said it was not a sure thing that he would survive.
Fifield was booked into the Santa Clara County Jail on animal cruelty, resisting arrest and threatening an officer charges.
