Teen who bit head off hamster withdrawn from Ole Miss

The family of a Madison teen who is seen in a spring break video biting the head off a hamster has withdrawn him from enrollment at the University of Mississippi.

The teen in the grainy spring break video is Brady Eaves, 18, who was identified as a Phi Delta Theta from Ole Miss. On Tuesday, Phi Delt issued a statement that Eaves has been removed from the fraternity.

Eaves is the stepson of one-time Mississippi Governor candidate John Arthur Eaves Jr. John and Angel Eaves released a statement late Tuesday confirming they had withdrawn Brady from school in order to have his behavior professionally assessed.

In the video, Eaves is seen wearing a pink shirt with a wolf's face on it. He can be seen picking up the hamster, and then it appears he snaps its neck before biting its head off. He then appears to spit the head on the ground and throw the body as a crowd of people react with screams and cheers.

"Let everyone please be assured that we do not take the subject of animal cruelty lightly, nor do we in any way condone the behavior displayed in the recent video of our son that has gone viral on the internet," the Eaves family's statement said.

On Tuesday, William Kneip, the president of the Mississippi Alpha Chapter of Phi Delta Theta, said the fraternity condemns Eaves' actions.

"We are very disappointed and disgusted in Brady's actions. These actions are inconsistent with what we believe as men of Phi Delta Theta and are inconsistent with the creed of the University of Mississippi," Kneip said. "This incident was during spring break and is in no way associated with any chapter activity of Phi Delta Theta. Brady has been removed from the fraternity."

Ole Miss' spring break was March 9-13. Kneip said the function was not a Phi Delt function, but he would not discuss how long the fraternity has been aware of the video or whether there were other Phi Delts there. He also would not discuss when Eaves was removed from the organization.

The video allegedly surfaced Friday night, when it was uploaded to YouTube with the title "psycho drunk spring breaker bites head off of hamster." It was quickly removed for breaking YouTube's terms of service.

"As parents we are obviously and very seriously concerned about the well-being of our son," the Eaves' statement read. "We have withdrawn him from school, and fully intend on professionally assessing why he behaved in such a horrible way, and what we must do as a family to keep this type of behavior from ever happening again."

The Eaves also said that the actions in the video do not reflect Brady Eaves' upbringing, and "his actions are not what he believes in his heart, nor are true to his character."

The statement went on to ask for prayers for Brady Eaves and the family.

Officials confirmed that Eaves was a student at the University of Mississippi this semester.

"University officials were recently made aware of this spring break video and we are actively investigating," said Dr. Brandi Hephner LaBanc, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs. "While federal law prohibits us from discussing matters that involve individual students, university officials will take appropriate steps as soon as all the facts have been gathered."

Sources close to Eaves told DailyMail.com that he is an "animal lover" whose numerous pets include a raccoon and a parrot.

The Daily Mail cited "sources connected to the incident" saying that the party of college students force-fed the hamster vodka and "hot-boxed" its cage with marijuana before it was orally decapitated.

PETA spokeswoman Stephanie Bell said someone sent that video to her organization over the weekend.

"Obviously we were horrified by the depictions in the video, and people are rightfully outraged about it," she said. "Animal abuse is a community concern, and people who abuse animals rarely do so only once, and almost never stop there. The link between cruelty to animals and interpersonal violence is undeniable."

Bell said PETA officials are working to verify exactly where the video was made.

"The Florida statute is actually quite strong. It prohibits causing cruel death or excessive or unnecessary pain or suffering, that would be considered aggravated animal cruelty, which is a felony in the third degree," Bell said.

According to Florida case law, psychiatric or psychological counseling is also mandatory for convicted offenders of aggravated animal cruelty.

PETA is closely monitoring the situation, and will push for a vigorous prosecution and psychological counseling, Bell said.

"Animals feel pain stress and fear like we do and they are deserving of our respect and protection," she said.

Felony animal cruelty charges in Florida carry a maximum jail term of five years and $5,000 in fines.