WTH?! They killed the dog while he was in jail? I hope there's more to this story then what was written. This doesn't make sense.
He apparently took an animal that was impounded without paying the fine. After he was arrested, I'm sure the animal was returned to the pound and was euthanized after a certain period, which is typical pound practice.
I'm sure this was a devastating blow for an elderly man who implicitly had no other friends or any unestranged family.