*This video contains images that some viewers might find difficult to watch.
RIO RANCHO, N.M. (KRQE) – A Rio Rancho dog groomer was led away in handcuffs after surveillance video showed her getting physical with a dog on her grooming table. A newly released video shows images of the abuse as well as how the groomer explained her behavior to officers.
On a Monday morning in July at Pet Paradise near Highway 528 and Northern. Groomer Sheila Baca calls Rio Rancho police, claiming a coworker assaulted her. But when officers arrive, the manager shows officers what really happened inside that grooming room, and the groomer’s story doesn’t add up.
As the video plays, Baca is shown struggling to keep a dog still on her grooming table. The dog repeatedly falls off the table, dangling by its leash. Then, officers see Baca’s frustration mounting.
The struggle escalates and the video appears to show Baca punching the dog again. She gets on her radio, but then throws the radio to the ground, followed by her shoes, and starts yelling when a coworker enters the room.
Management learns what’s been going on and they try to fire Baca. That’s when Baca claims the company’s HR rep elbowed her in the face, but according to the video, Baca appears to be the aggressor.
Later, Baca admits to hitting the dog, saying he was being unruly. “It’s not an easy job. I did slap that dog. But it’s not like I was abusing him, I was making him act right,” Baca says in the video.
She also admits to filling a garbage bag with the company’s supplies.
Officer: They just want to make sure you’re not taking any of their stuff.
Baca: I am. I’ll be honest, I am. But I’ll put it back.
Baca, now out of a job, gets led away in handcuffs. She is facing a misdemeanor charge of animal cruelty as well as felony larceny for the theft of the supplies.
Her case bears close similarities to another dog abuse case that surfaced this year – a groomer in Santa Fe seen on camera punching dogs and letting them dangle off the grooming table. Prosecutors identified that groomer as Onan Sanchez. He’s awaiting trial on extreme animal cruelty charges.
