A state appeals court has upheld the animal cruelty conviction of a man who said he used scissors to cut the paw off his dog’s broken leg, but the court overturned the man’s 60-day jail sentence.

John Christopher Jenkins told a state jury that he applied a splint, made from two Popsicle sticks and gauze, on one of the dog’s front legs in April 2012 after a friend stepped on the Pomeranian/Chihuahua mix named Volcano Dog and snapped the leg in half. He said he also gave the dog Aleve (an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drug) for pain relief and two days later re-wrapped the leg.

Jenkins, 57, said after a few more days the dog was whimpering in pain and just “flopping around” so he cut off the lower portion of its leg, soaked the wound in Hawaiian salt, applied antiseptic and re-wrapped the wound with new gauze. He said he called several veterinarians, got some quotes, including one for $1,200 because the paw was already off, but did not get professional care for the dog.

One of Jenkins’ tenants testified that Jenkins agreed to let her take the dog to a veterinarian after she saw the dog in the yard without any bandages on the wound. Another tenant said the bone was showing.

Two veterinarians performed emergency surgery and because of infection, amputated the rest of the leg 10 days after Jenkins said the leg was broken.

The prosecutor argued that Jenkins committed cruelty by depriving his pet of veterinary care needed to prevent suffering.

The jury found Jenkins guilty in August 2013 of the misdemeanor charge and a state judge sentenced him to one year of probation, including 60 days in jail. The judge also ordered Jenkins to perform 200 hours of community service, to divest himself of any pets, and prohibited him from owning and getting any new pets during his term of probation.

The judge suspended the sentence pending Jenkins’ appeal.

The Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals on Friday upheld the conviction but overturned the sentence because of the reason the judge gave for imposing it. The judge said he found Jenkins’ testimony that he was able to cut off the lower portion of the dog’s paw with a scissors not credible, suggesting that it takes more than a pair of paper scissors to cut through bone.

The appeals court remanded the case for re-sentencing because it said there was no evidence that Jenkins needed to cut through bone to amputate the dog’s leg.

The judge who sentenced Jenkins in 2013 no longer sits on the bench so Jenkins will face a new judge and again face a maximum one-year jail term.

Volcano Dog was adopted during Jenkins’ trial and now has a new name and a new family in Kapolei.