Man Gets Jail Time For Burying Puppies

Robert Homrighous, vilified by a nation for burying nine live puppies in his Oakland Park back yard, will spend four months in jail and five years on probation for cruelty to animals, a Broward County circuit judge ruled Friday.

But his real punishment is the “national shunning” he received after his acts became public and spurred thousands of hate letters, including one addressed to “the meanest man in the world,” said Homrighous’ attorney, Guy Seligman.

“There have been hundreds, even thousands of letters to Bob and to me, those that say I’m going to kill you for it, those who say I’m going to kill your lawyer for it,” Seligman said. Neighbors called police on Jan. 15 after they heard Sheba, Homrighous’ now-famous dog, crying in his yard. They investigated and found the Rottweiler mix digging up her nine puppies who had been placed in a paper bag and buried alive in the yard a few feet from her dog house.

Sheba had freed herself from her chain in order to unearth her puppies, police said. Three of the puppies died of exposure, but six survived and quickly found homes from among hundreds of offers that poured in from all over the world.

Homrighous, 42, pleaded no contest on March 22 to three counts of animal cruelty and six counts of animal abandonment. All nine dogs were confiscated, plus an 11-year-old Doberman that also lived at the house.