Man sentenced to 9 months in jail for starving pet pit bull

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) – A Palm Beach County man has been sentenced to nine months in jail for nearly starving a pet pit bull to death.

Thirty-eight-year-old Anthony Herring was convicted in July of allowing the dog, named Bella, to become almost skeletal while in his care.

Herring was sentenced Thursday.

The South Florida Sun Sentinel (http://bit.ly/1N3vZal ) reports that Assistant State Attorney Judy Arco called it one of the worst animal abuse cases in the county in recent years.

Herring told the judge he’d neglected the dog because of personal problems that included his mother’s illness and his own divorce.

Records show the dog weighed 23 pounds and couldn’t stand or walk when she was rescued in June 2014. Animal rights advocates say Bella is now thriving in a new home.