Man sentenced for dragging his dog behind his car

Man sentenced for dragging his dog behind his car

The Kecskemét Regional Court has sentenced to 60 days of detention a man who last September dragged his dog at high speed behind his car on a concrete road due to negligence, the court said in a statement.

On the morning of 1 September 2025, the man was driving from Tiszaalpár toward Kiskunfélegyháza, but when setting off he failed to notice that the dog he had tied the previous evening with a five-meter chain to the vehicle’s tow hitch was being dragged behind the car.

The man had traveled for about one kilometer when he noticed another vehicle behind him flashing its headlights and honking. He then stopped, removed the chain from the animal, placed the dog in the trunk, and drove back to his farmstead.

As a result of being dragged, the dog suffered abrasions and extensive tissue-loss injuries, with skin necrosis developing on certain parts of its body. Despite this, the man left the animal without care and did not call a veterinarian.

Following a report, the dog was found the next day and immediate veterinary treatment was begun. The treatment lasted nearly two months, with intensive daily care required during the first week. It was established that the lack of proper care and treatment could have led to the animal’s death, the statement said.

The 66-year-old man was initially sentenced on 5 September in expedited proceedings by the Kecskemét District Court to a fine of 425,000 forints, in a ruling that was not yet final.

According to the statement, the Chief Prosecutor’s Office appealed the first-instance ruling seeking the imposition of detention, while the defendant and his lawyer appealed primarily for acquittal and, alternatively, for a reduction of the sentence.

At a hearing, the Kecskemét Regional Court heard veterinarians who had attended the on-site inspection and, taking the veterinary documentation into account, concluded that the first-instance court had rightly rejected the defendant’s claim that he had partially treated the injuries—which he did not dispute he had caused through negligence—and that he would have called a veterinarian if the condition had worsened.

The court agreed with the Chief Prosecutor’s Office that detention was necessary to meet the aims of punishment, and therefore changed the sentence from a fine to detention.

The ruling of the Kecskemét Regional Court is final.