A Mountain Ash man and woman have been sentenced after they caused their two dogs to unnecessarily suffer.
Kenneth George Thomas (d.o.b 20/04/1964) and Denise Kimberley Warner (d.o.b 21/06/1973), of Hazel Terrace, Perthcelyn, Mountain Ash, appeared at Merthyr Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 13 April, and faced two offences under the Animal Welfare Act.
Both defendants had pleaded guilty to these at the first hearing.
The offences were that they caused unnecessary suffering to a brindle Staffordshire bull terrier type dog called Sheba, and also a dog called Vinnie, by failing to provide sufficient nutrition for their needs.
In a witness statement, RSPCA inspector Gemma Cooper, said she attended Hazel Terrace on 8 December 2021 and could see the two dogs in the back garden. They had no shelter and could see both dogs shivering.
Inspector Cooper spoke with the defendants and explained that both dogs were in very poor body condition and that they needed to go to the vets.
Thomas and Warner agreed to transfer the ownership of Sheba to the RSPCA but did not give permission to move Vinnie.
Inspector Cooper said: “As I walked back down to the rear of the garden, Sheba was still outside all hunched up, although they had let Vinnie inside out of the cold.
“When she did walk she appeared weak and had little muscle coverage over her back end. I could see every rib and every vertebrae along her spine.
“I placed a lead over Sheba and she refused to walk so I bent down to pick her up. As I carried her to the van I could feel her still shivering and as I placed her in my van I provided her with a hot water bottle which she immediately curled up around.”
Sheba was taken to a vet who said she was suffering due to lack of food – there was no food in her stomach and had no muscle.
Inspector Cooper later returned to Hazel Terrace with police, with officers seizing Vinnie.
Vinnie was examined by a veterinary surgeon who stated that he was very underweight but had slightly more muscle mass to him than Sheba. He also had a skin condition probably caused by parasites.
Both dogs were taken to RSPCA’s clinic in Merthyr Tydfil where they were given parasite treatment.
Magistrates sentenced the pair to pay a £200 fine each, £400 costs each and were ordered to pay £34 victim surcharge each, with the total financial penalty of £634 each. They were also disqualified from keeping dogs for five years.
Ownership of Vinnie has been transferred to the RSPCA, who will now be rehomed. Sheba has already been successfully rehomed.
