Nov 30, 2022 2 min read

A Hopwood man has been arrested on animal cruelty charges for allegedly not taking proper care of a dog.

Frank Patrick Koza, 41, of 134 Redstone Furnace Road, was charged Tuesday with a felony charge of aggravated cruelty to animals causing serious bodily injury or death, one count of a misdemeanor charge of cruelty to animals and three counts of the misdemeanor charge of neglect of animals. 

According to the criminal complaint filed by Trooper Joshua Humphrey of State Police at Uniontown, he responded to 22 Hinsey St. in North Union Township Oct. 24 to check on reports of a dog tied to a tree for an unknown amount of time.

Humphrey said he found “Daisey” tangled in the porch railing, covered in flies, malnourished and having a foul odor. He also noticed a large laceration on the left side of Daisey’s stomach.

Koza said he comes by every two weeks or so to take care of the dog for his mother who recently had a medical procedure not allowing her to move well. He said the last time he saw the dog she seemed fine and if he would have noticed anything wrong, he would have taken her to the veterinarian. 

On Oct. 24, Daisey was taken to Duck Hollow Animal Hospital. A report from the hospital released Nov. 7 said Daisey had afflictions such as severe weight loss and malnutrition, chronic skin inflammation and two types of skin cancers, increased white blood cell counts, dehydration and a decreased level of consciousness.

Koza is awaiting a preliminary hearing on the charges before Lemont Furnace District Judge Nathan Henning.