Cruelty

IT IS regrettable that the prestigious Liacouras Center at Temple will be the site of a panorama of pain euphemistically termed a "circus. " Sterling & Reid Bros. will be bringing a collection of captive animal pawns forced to perform unnatural and frightening acts as a result of the generous use of whips, bullhooks, electric prods and deprivation of food and water. Circuses are nothing more than an exercise in cruelty and exploitation masquerading as family entertainment.

The Humane Society of the United States will be offering a one-day seminar for area law enforcement on animal cruelty investigations, the organization announced. The training, through the affiliated Humane Society University, will be on Wednesday at the New Castle County Police Southern Headquarters in Middletown, Del. The course will include information on drafting arrest and search warrants, preparing for prosecution and testifying in court. Animal cruelty laws, including those for dog fighting, are on the books in all 50 states, but are often a low priority for prosecutors, according to the group.

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER'S SAVAGE GARDEN. 7 p.m. Sunday, TBS. If TBS is going to scare us out of our gardens, the least it could do is give us something decent to watch once we get inside. Instead, Sunday night it gives us "National Geographic Explorer's Savage Garden," a self-proclaimed "natural history comedy" that is one of the strangest specials ever to disturb a summer evening. Hosted by Leslie Nielsen, "Savage Garden" tells us the back yard is a "killing field" ruled by "stalkers and serial killers" - and then tries to exploit the carnage for cheap laughs.

"So did you hear God crying?" "Not in ways I expected. " In post-concert conversations, it was clear that nothing unfolded predictably Friday at the Kimmel Center's world premiere of Hannibal Lokumbe's oratorio, starting with the implications of its title. Can You Hear God Crying? , with its texts about inhuman racial cruelty, was rarely morose and often celebrated life - with an exuberant manner and creative restlessness that thrust the ear into new (but not hugely unfamiliar)

HERCULES was barely a dog anymore, confined and forgotten in a Gloucester County basement like a box of dusty, old toys. Meanwhile, upstairs, Roxanne Notaro's chocolate Labrador, "Little," had food, warmth and love. Officials with the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals say it's a miracle that Hercules, an American bulldog, is alive after cops found him locked in a small crate and covered in feces, urine and fleas in the basement of Notaro's home on Vassar Road in Wenonah last week.

A Montgomery County man has been charged with animal cruelty after he allegedly kicked and stomped on a neighbor's cat. Mieczyslaw Zwolinski, 60, of Lansdale, received a summons on the misdemeanor charge. According to police, neighbors said Zwolinski yelled and kicked the cat, which was in his yard, off the ground. They said he stomped on the animal at least six times as it tried to flee. The incident occurred Dec. 4, according to police. - Mari A. Schaefer

A woman who operated what she called an animal rescue operation has been charged with 43 counts of animal cruelty after sick and underweight animals were found in her filthy Delaware County house, the Pennsylvania SPCA announced Friday. Last month, PSPCA officers, executing a search warrant, removed 28 dogs from Sixth Angel Shepherd Rescue Inc., which Terry Silva, 53, operated out of her Marcus Hook property. Many of the dogs - German shepherds and shepherd mixes - were ill, the agency said.

A Southampton pet shop owner was fined $1,000 yesterday after the municipal judge found her guilty of cruelty to animals for leaving 19 dogs and cats unattended over a long weekend in October. Judge Dennis P. McInerney said he did not believe defendent Cheryl Hagenbarth of Vineland when she testified that she had visited her store, Just Pups, on Route 206 in Vincentown, during the weekend in question and attended the animals. The judge said that photos of the animals in their cages presented by prosecutor Mark Tarantino were "very disturbing . . . and very difficult for me to even look at. " The photos were taken by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA)

A U.S. Army major and his wife were arrested at their South Jersey home this morning and charged with multiple counts of "unimaginable cruelty" in the abuse of their three biological and two foster children. Maj. John E. Jackson, 37, and Carolyn Jackson, 35, surrendered to federal authorities in Mount Holly, said U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman. The Jacksons allegedly broke the children's bones, force fed them hot chile pepper flakes, starved them and withheld drinking water, then having one of the kids guard a toilet to prevent another parched child from drinking from it. The parents allegedly told their biological children they were "training" the foster kids and they should not report the assaults or cruelty to anyone.

A $5,000 REWARD is being offered to help authorities catch whoever intentionally set fire to a kitten found in Kensington last week. A woman recovered the 4- to 5-week-old male kitten last Thursday at Allegheny Avenue and F Street. Authorities said the kitten suffered burns over more than one-third of his body, with most of the burns on his head and back. The Humane Society of the United States announced the reward yesterday, citing the "depraved act of cruelty. " "This is the latest in a disturbing string of animals apparently being intentionally lit on fire," Sarah Speed, Pennsylvania state director for the Humane Society, said in a statement.

The Humane Society of the United States will be offering a one-day seminar for area law enforcement on animal cruelty investigations, the organization announced. The training, through the affiliated Humane Society University, will be on Wednesday at the New Castle County Police Southern Headquarters in Middletown, Del. The course will include information on drafting arrest and search warrants, preparing for prosecution and testifying in court. Animal cruelty laws, including those for dog fighting, are on the books in all 50 states, but are often a low priority for prosecutors, according to the group.

A woman who operated what she called an animal rescue operation has been charged with 43 counts of animal cruelty after sick and underweight animals were found in her filthy Delaware County house, the Pennsylvania SPCA announced Friday. Last month, PSPCA officers, executing a search warrant, removed 28 dogs from Sixth Angel Shepherd Rescue Inc., which Terry Silva, 53, operated out of her Marcus Hook property. Many of the dogs - German shepherds and shepherd mixes - were ill, the agency said.

A woman who operated what she described as an animal "rescue" operation has been charged with 43 counts of animal cruelty after sick and underweight animals were found in a filthy Delaware County house, the Pennsylvania SPCA announced Friday. Last month, PSPCA officers, executing a search warrant, removed 28 dogs from Sixth Angel Shepherd Rescue Inc., which Terry Silva, 53, she operated out of her Marcus Hook property. Many of the dogs - all of them German Shepherd and "Shepherd mixes" - were ill, the agency said.

TRUDY, a 6-month-old pit-bull mix full of life and energy, is the Daily News Pet of the Week. She loves people and playing with toys, but her real selling point is her adorable speckled nose. Trudy is young and eager to please - a perfect match for almost anyone. Come meet her at the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals at 350 E. Erie Ave. She has all of her shots and is spayed. Her adoption fee of $50 includes a month of free pet insurance.

THE Daily News Pet of the Week is Philly, a 7-to-8-year-old German shepherd mix at the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Philly gets along great with other dogs, is house-trained and knows basic obedience commands. He isn't afraid to lean in and give you puppy-dog eyes until you rub him. He has been neutered, is current with his vaccinations and comes with a month of free pet insurance. For more information on Philly, contact the PSPCA, 215-426-6300, stop by 350 E. Erie Ave. or visit pspca.org.

HARRISBURG - The sight was sad enough: When the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area seized 29 Morgan horses found languishing this month in a manure-choked barnyard near Hershey, many of the animals were down to skin and bones. Then came the bill: The estimate for the horses' basic veterinary care was $30,000 - not including food, hoof, and dental care, utilities, rent, or the cost of extra help. "You cannot predict the level of animal cruelty in your budget," said the society's executive director, Amy Kaunas.

A Montgomery County man has been charged with animal cruelty after he allegedly kicked and stomped on a neighbor's cat. Mieczyslaw Zwolinski, 60, of Lansdale, received a summons on the misdemeanor charge. According to police, neighbors said Zwolinski yelled and kicked the cat, which was in his yard, off the ground. They said he stomped on the animal at least six times as it tried to flee. The incident occurred Dec. 4, according to police. - Mari A. Schaefer