Dog in '˜hanging' video was simply '˜playing with a toy', say police

The PSNI had earlier issued an appeal for information about what appeared to be a “horrible crime”.

The short video had appeared to show a dog being hanged, with the sounds of a distressed animal could be heard.

An officer, writing on the PSNI North Belfast Facebook page, had written: “This type of behaviour is totally unacceptable and we are keen to find out who committed this horrible crime.” The officer added: “I have seen this video and it’s hard to watch. What we need are witnesses to come forward and help us bring this person to justice.”

However, after further investigation it has now turned out the dog in the video was simply being trained and is, in fact, a well looked after animal in good health.

Chief Inspector Kelly Moore said: “After extensive enquiries following a post on social media about suspected abuse of a dog, Police located the dog owner. We have visited the dog owner this morning along with colleagues from Animal Welfare in Belfast City Council.

“I can confirm after the visit that the dog is in good health and no abuse had taken place. Rather the dog was being trained and was playing with a toy. We are satisfied that no crime has taken place and that the animal is well looked after.”