Columbia man accused of taking home seagull from Gulf Coast, amputating wing with scissors
Ryan Shiner
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A Columbia man has been charged with a felony after he allegedly brought back a seagull from the Gulf of Mexico and amputated its wing with a pair of scissors.
Aaron Lacey was charged on Thursday with felony animal abuse, misdemeanor animal abuse and violating an ordinance by the county commission. A criminal summons was issued on Friday and an initial court appearance has been scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Thursday, June 26.
The probable cause statement says that animal control was called on Jan. 16 for a report of a pelican getting its leg stuck in a cage. The caller, who was watching Lacey’s home, said the pelican was brought back from Florida months ago because it had a broken wing, the statement says. When the animal control officer arrived, they learned the bird was actually a seagull.
The bird was without one of its wings and its leg was caught in the cage and hanging upside down, court documents say. The woman allegedly did not give an answer when asked if the wing was amputated by a professional, the statement says. The animal control officer said it would be evaluated by a raptor rehab. Fish and Wildlife authorities recommended the bird to be euthanized, the statement says.
The area of the bird’s missing wing was “extremely tender” and in obvious pain, according to the statement. Bone was allegedly exposed. The bird was determined to be emaciated and was “quick to start drinking water when offered and had a large appetite for the species appropriate food” offered to it, the statement says. Brown, murky water and parakeet food was with the small cage it resided, court documents say.
Lacey and “an unidentified woman” eventually called the animal control office and said they brought the bird back from the Gulf of Mexico after they found him with a broken wing, court documents say. They allegedly said they called rehab and veterinarians in that area, which told them to leave the bird alone, or it would be euthanized if it was brought in, the statement says.
Lacey and the woman allegedly said they didn’t feel it should be euthanized and claimed that they amputated its wing, but said all they had was a pair of scissors and a torch, court documents say. They did so without giving the bird pain medication and left the bone exposed, the statement says.
The pair allegedly asked why they couldn’t have the bird back.
“I told them that aside from the fact they transported him across state lines which is beyond illegal, they also removed his wing at home with no pain medication or antibiotics,” the animal control officer wrote.
The officer wrote that the bird suffered for months and also had bird lice.