Man Tattoos Pit Bull: Too Cute or Animal Cruelty?

We do just about everything for our pets, and that includes everything from buying them clothes to getting them spa treatments. But is it considered cute or cruel to get them inked up?

Ernesto Rodriguez put a tattoo on his pit bull. Few people ever saw the inked crest since it was on the dog's belly. But when he posted it on his Facebook page, Mr. Rodriguez ignited a firestorm of criticism.

"You are an absolutely disgusting human being for claiming that you 'love' your dog and think that it's ok to tattoo him. Did he give you informed consent? No. He's a dog. You have no empathy for animals and should not be allowed to care for any and you should not be allowed to be a tattoo artist because you have poor ethics," wrote Stephanie Bay, according to the Guardian Express.

As a military veteran, Rodriguez is the owner of several pit bulls, and stated that his dog Duchess was asleep and sedated, with local anesthetics for the tattoo. "I love my dogs. There's people out there saying that I'm cruel, that I hurt my dogs, that I don't love my dogs ... that I should be in jail," he said, according to WX112. "I paid a lot of money for my dogs and I take care of them."

The Facebook post may have been intended to earn Rodriguez more business for his tattoo parlor, "Planet Ink Tattoo," which he runs out of his basement in Pinnacle, N.C.

But it also won him a visit from the Stokes County Health Department which shut down his tattoo parlor because it violated local zoning laws.

Local animal control officers also visited but found nothing that violated the law. "Here is the final results for you haters out there," Rodriguez posted on Facebook, "Animal control came looked at my beautiful dog and left... wow... what a waste of tax payers (sic) money... so im (sic) still gonna tattoo my dogs when ever i feel like it... good try haters thanks for all the advertisement."

However, Rodriguez has recently taken a hit from many animal rights groups for tattooing his dog.

On the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) website, the following is posted in the section about implanting a microchip under the skin to protect pets from theft or loss.

"To make doubly sure that their animals are returned if lost or stolen, many caretakers also have their animals tattooed on their inner thigh with an identification number, such as their social security number, in their veterinarian's office or at a tattoo clinic. Unlike microchips, tattoos are visible (as long as the hair over the tattoo is thin or kept shaved or clipped short) and more noticeable to a person or animal shelter that may not have microchip scanning capabilities or knowledge of scanning technology."