This petition has been created to show that Australians support harsher penalties towards scum that hurt and/or torture defenseless and innocent animals, like Buckley (VIC) and Peanut (QLD). The current maximum penalty for animal cruelty in Australia is a pathetic 12 months jail, or a fine. The maximum penalty that has been handed out is 4 months. This matter needs to be taken more seriously, and the penalties need to be increased. Harming a defenceless animal is like hurting a child, neither can defend themselves. Please do your part - sign this petition and invite others to do the same. EXTRACT FROM NEWS (BUCKLEY): PUPPY'S EARS, TAIL CUT OFF IN SICKENING ATTACK A TORTURED puppy whose ears and tail were cut off with scissors in a cruel attack is looking for a loving home. Buckley, an eight-week-old border collie cross staffordshire bull terrier, was found abandoned in a school yard on Saturday, July 11, and taken to a veterinarian in Sydenham. With his wounds treated, Buckley is recuperating at the Lost Dogs’ Home in North Melbourne. Shelter manager Sue Conroy said the severe case of animal cruelty was one of the worst she had seen in 23 years at the Lost Dogs’ Home. “I’ve had staff crying,” she said. “The puppy would have received no anesthetic and would have made a lot of noise. “He would have been in unspeakable agony.” Ms Conroy said staff had treated his wounds with ointments and administered pain relief and antibiotics. She said the puppy “was not ready to be adopted just yet”. “Physically, he’s improving slightly every day,” Ms Conroy said. “His hearing will not be perfect, but he’s not deaf. “But mentally, he’s is still traumatised and is hiding from people.” Anyone with information should phone Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. EXTRACT FROM NEWS (PEANUT): HARDENED police officers have been shocked by the horrifying torture, mutilation and brutal slaying of a seven-month-old fox terrier pup "PEANUT" at Moranbah. The 2 accused did not apply for bail. Police have obtained video footage from a mobile phone that shows graphic images of the puppy yelping and howling in terrible pain as it is hacked to pieces Animal rights experts have described the case as one of the worst and most horrific in Australian history. Police allege that a pair of garden shears and a pocket knife were used to torture and kill the little puppy. Moranbah police said the dog was a family pet and the owners were too distressed and upset to talk to anyone about it. The pup's nose was cut off, its front right leg and rear left leg were cut off and it was decapitated. His stomach was cut open from neck to tail. Police will say the dog was stolen from a residence in Railway Parade in Moranbah and was taken to a lookout in the town. Congealed blood and dog hairs were found on picnic tables at the lookout. A three-part video series on a mobile phone shows the dog being tortured. The final stages of the video show the dog's mutilated body parts. The dog's body was found about 3.50am on Monday near the town's campdraft ground. It was dumped beside a road. Police were attending a car accident when they discovered the dog's body. After seizing the mobile phone, police recovered a set of garden shears which had dog hair and blood on them. Police also took possession of the clothes worn by two men in the car, for scientific testing. "Senior police officers were visibly shaken after viewing the footage. Police and the RSPCA say that if the allegations are true this could well be the worst case of animal cruelty ever brought before the courts in Australia," RSPCA's Queensland Chief Inspector Michael Pecic said. "This is very, very disturbing," Mr Pecic said. "For legal reasons this is really all I can say at the moment. But when you talk to senior police officers who have seen a lot of carnage in their time and they say it shocked even them, then you begin to get the picture." Footage from the attack has been suppressed by police until the outcome of the court case. The maximum penalty under the Animal Care and Protection Act for such an offence is $75,000 or two years in jail; however, the maximum penalty ever handed out has been a four-month jail term.