A Staten Island man has been convicted of biting his dog, but he blames the whole thing on puppy love.
“I’m not guilty of anything,” a defiant Moshe Sharon told The Post last week, vowing not to serve his sentence. “I’m not doing 15 days of community service.”
To him, munching on the ear of his 6-month-old Yorkshire terrier, Shakshuka, was an act of love.
“I like biting the dog to show affection,” he said, according to court papers. “I can’t help but bite her.”
Sharon’s bite, however, was worse than his bark — causing a hematoma that required surgery.
Sharon, 44, feasted on the furry appendage sometime between Nov. 7 and Nov. 11, according to a criminal complaint. He later brought the dog to St. Francis Animal Hospital, but kept nibbling on his pet’s ear in the veterinarian’s office, court papers say.
He says his only mistake was waiting three days to take Shakshuka — named for the Israeli poached-eggs dish — to the vet, by which time the Yorkie’s ear had filled with blood.
An angry employee at St. Francis Animal Hospital disagreed: “His mistake was biting the dog’s ear.”
Sharon was arrested Feb. 2 on a charge of torturing and injuring animals. He pleaded the charge down on June 10 to disorderly conduct, according to DA Michael McMahon’s office.
The plea deal mandates that Sharon perform the community service, fork over $250 and not own another animal for three years.
But last week, in an interview with The Post, he showed little remorse.
“I’m a full-time single dad,” Sharon said. “ I am not doing 15 days of community service . . . It cuts into my time with my son.”
Sharon said he “loved that dog,” which was taken from him and relocated upstate. His attorney, John Murphy Jr., declined to comment.