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For 'treated' read 'examined' and you'll probably be more on target.

You may be right, but I don't think so. Let me ask you to do this: picture yourself being beaten by this man, who was drunk, with a leash, with fists, and "raising his arm above his head". Is it possible you are not going to be injured to the point of felony assault? Yes. Is it probable? Very doubtful. I know it's a damn gray area between firm discipline and cruelty, particularly to an observer, however, given the fact that several witnesses stepped forward to denounce the guy, I'd guess he crossed it. Honestly, if he loved the dog, why wouldn't he petition for it back?

Well, first of all I don't have the thick skin and heavy coat of a hunting dog. I'm also a lot taller, so blows from a man are going to land directly and with a lot more force. A typical Springer is about 19-20" tall. My dog is 20 1/4" at the shoulder, and I'm not very tall, but I still have to lean way over to pet her or grab her collar (unless of course like most Labs she's standing on her hind legs and grinning at me). Add that to the fact that this guy was drunk, and a lot of the "whaling" the witnesses saw was blows that didn't land and windups that went nowhere. That would explain the relative lack of injury. As to why he didn't petition for the dog back, it was a recently acquired rescue and he decided it wasn't worth the trouble.

I could see a wide range of punishment for this guy, including an order that he undergo "obedience training" at his own expense or an order that he not own any animal for a period of years. But a felony conviction is way, way too much. You may not get a felony conviction for assaulting a HUMAN BEING, for heavens sake. (Simple assault or battery are still misdemeanors in a lot of states.)