Overview
- Martin County deputies arrested 62-year-old John Burt Sparhawk on a warrant for animal cruelty in Jensen Beach, Florida.
- Witnesses told deputies they saw him hold a five-month-old puppy above his head and lift it by a leash wrapped around its neck.
- A deputy rushed the dog to an emergency veterinary hospital, where staff treated seizures consistent with cocaine exposure.
- Sparhawk told deputies the puppy was seizing or may have eaten something in the woods, a claim veterinarians disputed.
- The Humane Society of the Treasure Coast has the puppy in protective custody while the investigation continues.