Woman who ‘found’ severely emaciated dog turns out to be the owner, sheriff’s office says

MIDDLETOWN, OH (FOX19) - The owner of Joseph’s Legacy’s ‘Starvin’ Marvin,' the severely emaciated Middletown dog, is now charged with animal cruelty.

The Butler County Sheriff’s Office announced the charge Thursday afternoon and says she is the same woman who turned the dog in to Joseph’s Legacy as a ‘found dog.’

Ashley Kubilus, 27, is charged with first degree cruelty to a companion animal.

READ MORE | Rescuers amazed malnourished dog is alive: ‘This is why we do what we do’

Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones says Butler County Dog Wardens conducted an investigation and determined that Kubilus did not ‘find’ the dog, but instead owned the dog for two years.

Kubilus says she was unable to care for the dog.

“This is not rocket science, you get a pet, you feed and take care of the pet or you give it to someone who will. This dog had been starved so badly I’m not sure how it is still alive right now," Sheriff Jones said. “She claimed she ran out of room because of buying new furniture so she kept it in a cage in the basement. The treatment of this animal is disgusting.”

Middletown animal rescue Joseph’s Legacy, who lovingly named the severely malnourished pet ‘Starvin’ Marvin,' says Kubilus claimed to have found the dog in the area of Central and Girard.

They said Marvin is underweight and severely malnourished.

Joseph’s Legacy President Meg Melampy says despite his condition, they have found Marvin to be sweet and friendly and it led them to believe he was someone’s pet.

“He’s not healthy enough to even be neutered yet. He’ll gain weight pretty quickly," Melampy said. "Within a week, he’ll look a lot better.”

Rescuers are unsure of how he ended up in his current state of starvation, although they do have suspicions.

“It’s happened before that people put them in there and try to ‘get even’ with a spouse or a family member, and they could have done this [starved the dog] on purpose," Melampy said.

The sheriff’s office says the dog will receive medical treatment and remain in the care of Joseph’s Legacy.

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