Groton Man Faces Charges Of Animal Abuse, Domestic Violence

A Groton man will appear in New London Superior Court Friday on animal cruelty charges after a dog brought to Veterinary Emergency Treatment Services in Oakdale was found to have massive internal injuries.

The dog has since been turned over to the town of Groton and adopted by a medical professional, said Animal Control Officer Donna Duso.

 “He’s doing good.  They love him, and they take excellent care of him,” she said.

Tyler M. Cauley, 26, of 101 Driftwood Circle in Groton, was charged with cruelty to animals, failure to vaccinate and three counts of failure to license in connection with the incident on Jan. 16.

Cauley is also due to appear in court Thursday on charges related to a separate domestic incident in January 2010.  Cauley was charged with third-degree assault, interfering with an emergency call, third-degree strangulation, reckless endangerment and second-degree unlawful restraint, according to documents filed on the case in New London Superior Court.

Cauley could not be reached by phone Tuesday. There was no answer at the door to his home.

State Rep. Diana Urban, D-North Stonington, said the Groton case is an example of the overlap courts see involving animal abuse and domestic violence.

Urban has introduced a bill that would require convictions of animal cruelty to be reported to the Department of Children and Families, so the agency can check the address to see if there is an active case in the home.

“The statistics that you can find on this are just stunning,” she said. “There is an incredible overlap between domestic violence, child abuse and animal cruelty.”

Court documents said Cauley, who was living on Ledge Wood Drive in Groton at the time of the domestic incident, was arguing with the victim about fidelity, when the woman said he grabbed her by the neck when she was in the bathroom, and began choking her.

“The victim stated that she could not breathe or scream,” a report on the case said. She told officers he then threw her into the shower and “began punching and kicking her in the face, causing her nose to start bleeding,” court documents said.

In the recent animal case, due to be heard March 4, an affidavit said a veterinarian called Groton Animal Control on Jan. 17, saying a 10-month-old miniature poodle had been brought in a day earlier with injuries that “were not consistent with the explanation given by the owners.”

The vet said a man who gave his last name as Cauley called the animal hospital, saying the dog was being brought in because he had stepped on its neck, and the dog was in pain, the affidavit said.  When the dog arrived, it was so severely injured it had to be rushed to intensive care, the veterinarian said.

“Resuscitation measures were taken to restore blood pressure and protect against secondary brain injury from advanced shock,” the affidavit said.

According to the affidavit, Duso said she interviewed Cauley after the incident, and he said he stepped on the dog, named “Bubba,” as he was letting two other dogs out the back door.

But Duso said a woman later told her Cauley said he spanked the dog for going to be bathroom in the house, the affidavit said.

The vets at the hospital later signed a report saying that “…extensive internal bleeding, bruising to the head and scrotum, and bleeding into the eyes are more consistent with blunt force trauma; kicking, throwing, slapping, excessive restraint, etc,” court documents said.