Quincy dog sitter accused of abusing dog, stealing from owners

QUINCY, Mass. — Joe Hingston and his wife celebrated their 15th anniversary with a trip to Mexico. While they were away, they wanted to leave their 13-year-old dog, Sully, at home, so they hired a dog sitter. When the couple returned, they said they found Sully in bad shape.

Hingston, a Brookline firefighter, told FOX25 that Sully suffered multiple wounds from "sitting in his urine for two or three days."

Hingston also accused the dog sitter, Katie Barker, of stealing hundreds of dollars from their house that was set aside for a firefighters’ funeral fund.

FOX25 spoke exclusively to Barker, who said she did nothing wrong and claimed the accusations were lies.

“It breaks my heart to look at [Sully] and to see him suffering,” she said. “He has hip dysplasia and he's constantly falling and then trying to lift himself back up.”

Barker hasn’t been charged but will be summonsed to court at a future date.

“I'm there for the dog...that's I care about...I don't care what you have in your house,” Barker said. “They are all lies...I went above and beyond what was requested of me, because that's how much I love for animals.”

Cox Media Group