Roommate speaks about puppy thrown over balcony

Barrington Park Apartments management evicted a woman who allegedly threw a puppy named Lola over the balcony at the complex in Mobile.

Mobile Police said the owner of the puppy, Kendria Dexter, was arrested the next afternoon for animal cruelty.

Dexter's roommate is speaking out about what happened before Dexter threw Lola over the third-story balcony of her apartment.

"It started over a pair of headphones. And from a pair of headphones, it escalated into a pair of arguments that was unsettled. I guess she got so upset about the arguments, she tossed the dog, saying that the dog was the initiator," said roommate Andrea Griffin.  

The two had been living in the apartment together since December, and Griffin said Dexter got the puppy in March.

Griffin said Dexter wouldn't take care of the dog, and that led to arguments about Lola chewing on Griffin’s headphones and urinating on the carpet.

"First, she didn't feed it. I think she forgot about it at first, so I had been feeding her. But lately, she had been feeding her. She just wasn't picking up after her correctly," said Griffin.

Griffin said Dexter was mad Lola was causing problems, so she picked the dog up and threw her over the balcony.

"At first, I thought she was going to throw her on the floor of the balcony. Then she tossed her, so I called 911 and apartment management,” said Griffin.

The property manager at the complex, Scott Kimbler, said he found the puppy, a 9-week-old long-haired dachshund, on a grassy area, struggling to breathe.

Dexter told Kimbler it was an accident.

Residents at Barrington Park Apartments worked together to get the puppy to the vet safely on Tuesday. She is being treated for her injuries at South Alabama Spay and Neuter Clinic.

“She is a little bit anemic and has some vomiting issues, so we’re trying to keep her comfortable,” said Dr. Jeni Knizley.

Vets said Lola has liver damage from the fall but no broken bones.

“She's made it through the first 48 hours, and she responded well and came out of her shock state relatively quickly,” Knizley said.

Vets said Lola has improved from critical to serious condition, but she still needs to be closely monitored.

“She is making improvement and heading in the right direction, but there is still a chance she could make a change for the worse,” said Knizley.

Dexter was arrested on Wednesday night but is out of jail on $1,000 bond.

“I feel like she should be punished for this crime because it was uncalled for, and all of this could have been avoided,” said Griffin.

She said she feels like a hero.

“If I hadn't been the one to press charges against her, she wouldn't have cared,” Griffin said. “She did a fatal thing to a puppy that was just sitting in the room minding its business."

Dexter's court date is set for May 7.

You can donate to Lola at Save a Stray or directly to the clinic.