Nanaimo Mounties are investigating an alleged assault in which a man pepper sprayed a dog and its owner and beat them with a stick.
The incident happened at Invermere beach, an off-leash dog park in north Nanaimo, on Monday at about 2:45 p.m.
A woman was at the beach with two adult friends and their four dogs when a man walked by and started screaming he hated dogs.
One of the four dogs, a one-year-old pit bull, came within two metres of the man who hit the dog with a stick he was carrying before pepper spraying the dog.
When the dog's owner approached to retrieve her pet, she was also hit with the stick and pepper sprayed on the side of her face.
The man then walked toward another large group of dogs and their owners and started yelling about how he hated dogs.
The woman who was assaulted left with her friends and dogs.
She had her dog checked over by a veterinarian who determined the dog was fine.
She is scheduled for x-rays of her shoulder where she was struck by the stick.
The suspect is Caucasian, 50-60 years old, 5' 7" to 5' 9" tall with a thin build. He was wearing a Cowichan sweater, blue and red shorts, a brown baseball hat and work boots.
Anyone with information about this incident or knows the suspect's identity is asked to call Const. Ben Lanthier of the Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345 or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.nanaimocrimestoppers.com.