posted October 10, 2004 01:57 PM         

Stars offer reward for dog-drowning arrest

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BOSTON -- Comedian Richard Pryor and former "Friends" star Matthew Perry are adding to the reward for information leading to the arrest of the person who drowned a golden retriever in the surf on the Massachusetts coast.

The dog, which police said had been tied up, muzzled and stuffed inside a burlap bag, was found on Sept. 21 by a person walking on the beach in Nahant, Mass.

Pryor heard about the incident through a network of fellow animal lovers, said Linda Horsley, a pet sitter from Nahant, who is helping to organize the reward efforts with the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

"The thinking is just so sick," Horsley said. "It's important to raise the awareness that cruelty to animals is just not tolerable."

Pryor and his wife, Jennifer, have donated $1,000 to the reward fund, Horsley said. They have also paid for a banner to appear at a fund-raising walk for the MSPCA on Oct. 17.

The MSPCA said Perry has also contributed to the fund.