Dog-beater gets 60-day sentence, lifetime ban

The Vancouver man who admitted he beat a German shepherd with a bat and left it to die in a Kitsilano dumpster has been sentenced to 60 days in jail today.

Brian Whitlock, 26, was also given three years probation and a lifetime ban on owning pets. Judge David St. Pierre told Whitlock: "In life, there are consequences for bad decisions."

The judge gave Whitlock credit for53 days spentin custody, sohe is expected to only serve a further seven days in jail.

After the sentence was announced,some of the dozens of animal rights supporters in the gallery shouted out: "So disgusting," whichprompted the judge to threaten to have them removed.

The judge then admonished the people who had threatened Whitlock publicly in the past, saying Whitlock must be able to live without fear of criminal vigilantes who want to avenge the dog's death.

• Read more about the trial

Whitlock pleaded guilty to animal cruelty in April after two-year-old Captain was found in a dumpster, wrapped in a bloody blanket, in July 2012. The dog wasemaciated, and had been stabbed, cut and brutally beaten. The dog died a short time later despite the SPCA's attempts to save its life.