Couple’s dog was covered in urine burns and starving, cops say

NEWARK — Two people have been charged with leaving a puppy in such deplorable conditions that when it was found the dog had burns all over from its own bodily fluids.

The two people have been identified as Jose E. Martinez, 29, and his girlfriend Porchia Williams, 27, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II. The prosecutor said the two are facing animal cruelty charges after not feeding the puppy on a regular basis and "forcing him to remain in his wire cage with urine and fecal matter," Stephens said.

The puppy was found weighing just 8.5 pounds, starving, with pressure sores all over his body, Assistant Prosecutor Michele Miller said. The dog had urine and fecal matter all over its feet and body "resulting in urine burns to the tail, hindquarters and paws," Stephens said.

The couple has been charged with animal cruelty and was released pending a future court date. The dog was taken to an emergency facility in Fairfield where it is being treated. What happens next to the dog has yet to be determined, police said.