CHENNAI: As a murder (group) of crows descended on a meat shop in Guduvanchery on Monday evening for a feast of leftovers, there was something else amid the heap - a dog's leg.

From the meat shop, a long trail of blood led to a shanty nearby, where a mongrel sat motionless, whimpering in shock and pain.

"It took the butcher only one blow," a passerby said, "to sever the mongrel's left hind leg for no reason." The act appeared to have been carried out on a whim, with a butcher's clinical perfection and indifference.

The dog was standing near the meat shop at Guduvanchery junction when all of a sudden, the butcher came out, dragged it in and hacked its leg, said Raj Ganesh, an IT professional who witnessed the brutal act. "The mongrel whimpered in pain and somehow dragged itself away. The butcher calmly went inside and resumed his work," he said. Raj then informed volunteers of People for Cattle in India (PFCI).

"Around 5pm on Monday, I received a call saying a black mongrel was attacked. Our volunteers took the dog to the R A Puram veterinary hospital. It had lost a lot of blood. The doctors performed an immediate surgery to amputate its hind leg," said G Arun Prasanna of PFCI. He added that the butcher, Riyaz, threatened the volunteers with dire consequences when questioned.

On Tuesday, the Guduvanchery police registered an FIR under Sections 429 (mischief by killing or maiming an animal) and 506 (i) (criminal intimidation) along with sections of the Prevention of Cruelty Towards Animals Act, 1960. "There was no motive for the crime," said sub-inspector Dilli Babu, adding, "the accused is absconding and would be arrested shortly."

"The mongrel is on intravenous fluids. Though it will survive, it has to fend for itself on its three legs from now on," said veterinarian Dr V Sujatha.

Violent acts towards animals have long been recognised as indicators of a dangerous psychopathology. "Communities must recognise that abuse of any living being is unacceptable," said Chaitanya Koduri of PFCI.

