A man who threw a small dog against a wall and strangled it to death after he became angry has been jailed.
Robert Fitzgerald, 38, killed Titch the miniature Yorkshire terrier after he flew into a rage when he tripped over the tiny pooch after a call.
He had been looking after the dog for friends Paul and Donna James at their home in Birmingham while they went on holiday to Spain.
The court heard the callous became stressed following an angry phone call with his employers on April 21 this year.
A neighbour, Jade Leech, who had been asked to keep an eye on the dog by its owners, found the dead pet wrapped in bedding the day after the attack.
Teenager shot dead in 108th killing to hit London this year named by policeWest Midlands Police and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) were called in to investigate.
A post mortem found Titch died of blunt force trauma to the head, causing a brain haemorrhage and fracture to the skull on the left side of the head behind the eye.
The vet also found dislocation of the tail bones 2.5cm away from the tip of the tail.
In a police interview, Fitzgerald, of Sparkhill, Birmingham, who has learning difficulties, admitted killing the animal.
Yesterday, he was jailed for 16 weeks after pleading guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal at Birmingham Magistrates Court.
Chair of the bench Paul Grace also disqualified him from owning animals for life and ordered Fitzgerald to pay a victim surcharge of £115.
Skripal suspect 'revealed as spy given Putin's highest military honour'He said: ‘The offence is so serious only a custodial sentence can be justified.
‘We find high culpability and greater harm. Your learning difficulties do not mitigate your behaviour.
‘We sentence you to 20 weeks reduced to 16 weeks because of your early guilty plea.
‘We disqualify you for life from owning another animal. This was an appalling incident – you are going down now.’
Rafe Turner, prosecuting on behalf of the RSPCA, said: ‘He has admitted causing the dog’s death. Perhaps the clue to the size of the dog is in the name – Titch.
‘In an interview on May 15, Mr Fitzgerald admitted subjecting the dog to blunt force trauma and also admitted to strangling the dog.
‘He said something at work had upset him. He had had a telephone call which was a difficult telephone call with his employers and that caused him to be angry.’
If your laptop's been stolen recently police might have just found itKate Scully, defending, said: ‘This happened as a result of stress. He was undergoing significant stress at this time.
‘He was off work and was under pressure to return to work. He did trip over the dog and things spiralled from there.
‘His learning disability would have limited his ability to adapt to stress.’
