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Florida man kicked chicken like 'a field goal,’ deputies say

A Florida man is accused of kicking a chicken “like a football player kicks a field goal," so hard that he broke four of the animal’s ribs, authorities said.

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Nicholas Kevin Chew, 43, of Marathon, was arrested Monday charged with animal cruelty, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

Chew told deputies he was “kicking the chicken out the way” and was annoyed by the noise the animal was making, the Miami Herald reported.

The incident took place March 22 in Marathon, deputies said. Authorities responded to a call about a domestic argument, the newspaper reported. When Sgt. Joel Slough arrived, he was told by Chew’s girlfriend that “she was mad that Chew kicked a chicken and possibly broke its leg,” the Sheriff’s Office said.

“Chew admitted to kicking the chicken out of the way, further admitting his annoyance by the noise the birds cause,” the Sheriff’s Office said. “A separate witness stated he saw Chew kick the chicken in the way a football player would kick a field goal.”

Slough found a Rhode Island Red chicken standing on one leg and appearing to be “in respiratory stress,” the Herald reported.

The chicken was taken by Animal Control to Marathon Veterinary Hospital, the Herald reported, and it was discovered the animal had four broken ribs. The chicken’s owner was reunited with the animal after it had been taken to the Florida Keys Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the newspaper reported.

The owner is going to press charges, WTVJ reported. Chew is being held on a $10,000 bond and will be arraigned June 11. according to arrest records.