A small brown and white pit bull was beaten with a belt and hung from a tree by Delfino Rosales in Fort Pierce, Florida.

The same man is now facing charges not just for animal cruelty, but also domestic violence and child abuse after allegedly choking a woman and endangering a child who tried to intervene.

This is not just animal abuse. This is violent, escalating behavior — and it must be met with the full weight of the law.

According to the arrest report, Rosales told deputies he beat the dog because it didn’t respond to English commands. Just days earlier, he allegedly strung the same dog up in his backyard for several minutes as punishment for attacking a chicken — an act witnessed by the woman and interrupted by Rosales’ own son.

Deputies later discovered the noose still in his yard. The dog — along with a second dog — was removed by animal control for its safety. Both dogs were owned by the woman, not Rosales.

We, the undersigned, are calling on the St. Lucie County State Attorney’s Office to pursue the maximum legal penalties in this case.

Animal abuse, domestic violence, and child endangerment are serious crimes — and the combination of all three demands a strong, uncompromising response from the justice system.

This dog survived. But how many more won’t, if cases like this are met with leniency?

Send a message: Animal cruelty is violence. And violence will not be tolerated.