Kobe is a five-year-old Coonhound-Boxer mix from Sound Beach, New York. A healthy dog his age should weigh about 65 to 67 pounds. When Kobe reached a veterinarian, he weighed 37.
The Suffolk County SPCA says he was kept in a crate inside the home without enough nutritious food or water. That veterinarians found ulcerative lesions over his bony areas consistent with prolonged pressure. On October 12, 2026, SPCA detectives charged Michael O'Brien and Jenecia O'Brien, each with two misdemeanor counts under New York's Agriculture and Markets Law. The charges are accusations, and both are presumed innocent.
Kobe is now getting medical treatment at a local animal shelter. The question is what happens next. Misdemeanor animal cruelty cases are too often pleaded down to almost nothing, and the animal goes back into the world with no protection.
I am asking the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office to prosecute this case fully, to seek the strongest penalties the law allows if there is a conviction, and to ask the court to keep Kobe permanently safe, including a ban on the defendants keeping animals and an order that Kobe never returns to that home.
The arraignment is October 30, 2026, in First District Court in Central Islip. Please sign and share so Kobe's case isn't forgotten by that day.
Thank you for caring about dogs like Kobe.
