Florida is known for producing some of the strangest news stories in America.
But even by Florida standards, this latest tale stands out as particularly bizarre.
And a Florida man turned on his pet peacocks after his neighbor made one move that sent him over the edge.
Hudson resident takes extreme action against neighbor
Craig Vogt thought he had the perfect setup in Hudson, Florida – a 40-mile drive northwest of Tampa.¹
The 61-year-old owned several peacocks that roamed freely around his property, adding an exotic touch to the suburban neighborhood.
But Vogt’s peaceful bird sanctuary turned into the scene of a shocking crime that left his neighbor horrified and law enforcement scratching their heads.
The trouble started when Vogt’s neighbor began feeding his peacocks.
Most pet owners would appreciate a neighbor who cared enough to feed their animals.
Not Vogt.
He repeatedly warned Day-Barker to stop feeding his birds, but she continued the practice anyway.
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That’s when this Florida man decided to teach his neighbor a lesson she’d never forget.
Vogt puts his twisted confession in writing
September 20 started like any other day for Vogt’s neighbor.²
She walked out to get the mail and found something that would give her nightmares.
Vogt had left her a letter bragging about what he’d done to two of his peacocks.
He went into graphic detail about slitting their throats with a knife.
The letter described how he bled the birds out before frying them up for dinner.
And here’s the kicker – Vogt wasn’t done.
He told his neighbor he’d keep killing and eating his peacocks until she stopped feeding them.
The woman called the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office the same day.
Deputies get the full confession from an unrepentant Vogt
The deputies who showed up at Vogt’s door expected some pushback.³
They got the opposite.
Vogt admitted everything and told officers he wrote the letter "to prove a point."
He walked them through exactly how he killed the peacocks – slitting their throats with a knife before cooking them up for dinner.
He described the entire process in graphic detail, from bleeding out the peacocks to frying them up in his kitchen.
The 61-year-old admitted he’d acted "out of spite" because his neighbor wouldn’t stop feeding his birds.
But perhaps most disturbing of all was what Vogt told deputies while being transported to jail.
He announced that once he was released, he planned to kill all of his remaining peacocks to prevent anyone else from taking custody of them.
The legal consequences catch up to a spiteful neighbor
Vogt was arrested on September 23 and charged with aggravated animal cruelty resulting in excessive pain or death.⁴
The felony charge carries serious consequences in Florida, where all animals are protected under the state’s anti-cruelty laws.
A judge set Vogt’s bond at $25,000 and assigned him a public defender.
As of late September, he remained locked up in the Land O’ Lakes Detention Center, unable to make bail.
The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office noted that while peacocks aren’t native to Florida and therefore not protected as wildlife, they’re still considered domestic animals under state law.
Any charges related to killing them depend on the specific circumstances – and in this case, those circumstances were particularly disturbing.
Florida’s reputation for bizarre crimes continues
Look, Florida has earned its reputation for producing some of the most outlandish criminal cases in America.
But this peacock incident stands out even by Sunshine State standards.
Here’s a guy who owned beautiful, exotic birds that most people would consider a privilege to care for.
You’ve got a neighbor who liked his birds enough to toss them some food.
Most people would say "thanks for looking out for my pets."
Vogt’s response was to turn into a one-man slaughterhouse.
Writing that confession letter wasn’t some spur-of-the-moment thing.
This guy planned out his revenge and wanted to make sure his neighbor knew exactly what he’d done.
But threatening to kill the rest of his peacocks just so nobody else can care for them?
That’s a whole different level of spite.
Suburban neighborhoods used to be places where the biggest drama was someone not mowing their lawn.
Now you’ve got neighbors who’ll kill their own pets over a disagreement about bird feed.
At least the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office didn’t treat this like some harmless neighbor spat.
¹ Fox 13 Tampa Bay Staff, "Man accused of killing pet peacocks, eating them, over dispute with neighbor," Fox 13 News, September 26, 2025.
² WFLA Staff, "Pasco man charged after killing, eating 2 pet peacocks," WFLA News, September 28, 2025.
³ Brian McBride, "Hudson man jailed after killing, eating pet peacocks over dispute with neighbor: PCSO," Spectrum Bay News 9, September 27, 2025.
⁴ Mitchell Willetts, "Man kills and eats his pet peacocks because neighbor fed them, Florida cops say," Miami Herald, September 28, 2025.
