Father turns in daughter to face animal cruelty charges

NOTTINGHAM TOWNSHIP, Pa. — There has been an outpouring of support for the dogs at the Washington County Humane Society.

The father of one of the women arrested told Channel 11 he turned her in himself, which wasn't an easy decision, but he wants her to be held accountable for starving the dog. He's also worried for her because she's been receiving a lot of threats.

When William Wright saw the photo circulating on social media of a starving, skinny dog, he feared the worst: that it belonged to his daughter, Tonysha Wright.

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He made the difficult decision to call the Humane Society and report Tonysha and her live-in girlfriend, Tonya Papa.

According to investigators, the pair abandoned Bella and their other dog, Coal, on Sugar Run Road in Nottingham Township last week.

Both dogs' ribs were clearly visible.

"That's what the problem (is) today. Kids have no consequence for what they do. They gotta learn," Wright said. "I don't know where my daughter went wrong with none of it. Since my daughter was born, I've always had a dog and she knows how to take care of a dog. She's thinking she going to jail immediately. I got off work, I called her, I said, 'We will go together. I'll go with you.'"

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Wright told Channel 11 that since the story exploded on social media, Tonysha is getting death threats and photos of her 3-year-old child are being shared.

People are even sharing photos of William Wright's dog, questioning if he's being taken care of.

"My dog is 100 pounds, he's not missing a meal," Wright said. "Let the judicial system happen. All the bashing, it's pretty bad."

Both women are facing felony aggravated animal cruelty charges and Wright said they both need to be held accountable.

The humane officer handling the case told Channel 11 the first dog found is now in a foster home and doing extremely well.

The second dog is still being treated, but is also doing well.

Cox Media Group