unfortunately, sentences for this sort of thing are dictated by law, not by judges. a judge's hands are tied when it comes to how much time he/she can sentence an offender to. when my ex was on the bench, he heard several animal cruelty cases. upon a finding of guilt, he sentenced the defendant to the maximum. sadly, the maximum was a short stint in the county jail and a meager fine and court costs. when the law allowed, he also included in his sentence a period of community service at the local animal shelter.
animal abusers rarely, if ever, go to prison (as opposed to county jail). prisons are too overcrowded for the courts to "bother" sending these people. if they start sending these poor excuses for human beings to prison, they will be releasing murderers and child rapists to make room for them. it's a sad, sad state of affairs.
what we have to do as concerned citizens is to write our elected officials and DEMAND that the laws be changed to incorporate stiffer penalties for animal cruelty. for sure, it's an uphill battle all the way.
just to give you an example...in the next county a man was convicted of torturing a mare. in the middle of the night, he climbed a pasture fence, tied the mare to a post with a rope around her neck (no halter), dragged a bale of straw up behind her, and...i don't think i have to get graphic here...suffice it to say, he was a pervert. when he was finished with her, he climbed the fence and disappeared. the mare was found the next day, strangled. she was a family pet, a common sight in local parades and paid regular visits to the nursing home. she was much loved. eventually, he was arrested and jailed, pending trial. he spent 2 years in jail while his case was continued over and over. when he was finally tried and convicted, he was sentenced to "time served" and a fine/court costs. he is out walking the streets while the owners of this mare are STILL trying to come to terms with her death and trying to explain to their young children why "dolly" had to go to heaven.
i could go on and on.