Video Showing Dog Being Thrown Off Cliff Sparks Outrage, Calls for Punishment

Police are pursuing a man who was recorded throwing a dog off a cliff and into the sea in England on May 1.

In a video obtained by Daily Mail, a young, red-haired fellow holds a dog up with both of his hands before throwing it out to sea. The dog still has its leash on. The dog can be seen wiggling and writhing as it flies through the air.

As the dog hits the water, it immediately heads for the nearby shore, where it appears to reach land still in decent shape.

The video footage was spread widely on social media before it was deleted, according to Daily Mail.

Police confirmed that the dog was not injured, despite speculations on social media to the contrary, Cornwall Live reported.

“We are aware of an incident of animal cruelty which has been reported in Falmouth. This matter is being investigated. Please appreciate that we need to do this effectively without intrusion or inaproppriate [sic] comments or threats. The dog is alive, uninjured, safe and well,” Falmouth & Helston Police posted on their Facebook page.

Some of the commenters were relieved that the dog went unharmed.

“Good the dog survived as lots of rumours saying that he died of a broken back afterwards. Shocking poor dog hope the person responsible is dealt with appropriately [sic],” commented Helen Buckland on the police’s post.

Others were outraged by what they had been in the video.

“What is there to investigate, the video shows exactly what happened, there is no ambiguity concerning the cruelty to the dog, the perpetrators have been clearly identified. That animal should now be safe and well, removed from the ‘care’ of its owners [sic],” commented Debra Clegg.

Some are worried that the perpetrator will walk away unpunished.

“Absolutely heart breaking to even read this happened in our home town anyway. We were such a lovely town once upon a time behaviour like this cannot be tolerated. There isn’t enough consequences for people. Eye for an eye they used to say and now we are too afraid to inflict consequences [sic],” commented Jolene Stuthridge.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is also investigating.

“We have been made aware of some upsetting footage showing a dog being thrown off a cliff in Falmouth, Cornwall, reads a statement from the animal group, obtained by BBC. “We are very concerned about this incident and would like to reassure people we are looking into it.”

Dog Found Swimming Offshore

In April, the Bangkok Post reported that a dog was found swimming about 137 miles from shore in the Gulf of Thailand off of Songkhla province.

The dog was discovered by workers on an oil drilling rig. The dog is believed to have fallen from a fishing boat, the Bangkok Post reported. The dog swam towards the oil platform and clung to a pole. Four people used a rope to pull the dog to safety.

The rescue operation took 15 minutes, Vitisak Payalaw, an offshore planner for Chevron Thailand Exploration and Production, told ABC News.

After being brought ashore in Thailand, the dog stayed at Dog Smile House. Vitisak then adopted the dog for himself. He took leave from work to transport the dog to his home in Khon Kaen, Thailand, the Bangkok Post reported.

The dog, who was nicknamed Boonrod by his rescuers, now has a Facebook page of his own. Boonrod means “the dog rescued by merit,” according to ABC News.