Tough line on crime It's part of the RSPCA's job to prevent and suppress cruelty to animals.
We are out there daily responding to complaints alleging that animals are being ill treated.
We'll always step in first with advice if we think an owner needs guidance or a helping hand,
however, when we need to, we will build a case and prosecute to safeguard animals' welfare
and deter people from offending. The good news is that in 2014 animal cruelty convictions
were down 38 percent from the previous year.
New home for
starved dog
Bella, who featured in
the Channel 5 TV series
The Dog Rescuers, was
found by RSPCA Inspector
Kate Fletcher (right) in
a flat without access to
food or water. Bella was
described by a vet as being
"outstandingly underweight,
emaciated and about as thin
as she could be…" Blood
tests showed the German
shepherd's condition was
simply due to starvation.
Her owner admitted he had
never taken Bella to a vet,
but was adamant he had
done nothing wrong. He
pleaded not guilty to two
charges under the Animal
Welfare Act 2006, but was
found guilty of both charges. He was sentenced to 16
weeks' imprisonment, banned from keeping dogs for life
and ordered to pay £484 costs.
Bella's weight increased by a staggering 62 percent after
just two months of proper care, and we found her a
loving new home.
Remorseful man given a caution
A man who set snares in his garden to catch foxes and
deer that he thought were damaging his trees, failed to
check the snares on a daily basis, which is required by
law. Two cats were caught in two of the snares - one of
them was badly injured. RSPCA Inspector Kirsty Withnall
investigated and warned the man it was an offence to
snare deer. He was very remorseful and paid for the
injured cat's veterinary treatment. The matter was dealt
with by issuing a caution, which the man accepted. www.rspca.org.uk/prosecution
PAGE SEVEN
in 2014 we
investigated
159,831cruelty complaints,
successfully
implemented
82,746welfare notices to
prevent suffering
and secured
2,419convictions
WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE DO ANNUAL REVIEW 2014
when we need to
taking action
Callous drinker
pays for prank
A social media craze
resulted in animal cruelty
convictions for several
people in 2014. The drinking
game NekNominate involves
people challenging one
another to drink strange
alcoholic concoctions. Sadly,
some took it too far and
decided to involve animals.
We prosecuted five such
cases, including a
man who put a live
frog and lizard into
a glass of water and
swallowed them.
RSPCA Inspector
Alan Browning said:
"These two small
animals would
have suffered considerably
during this incident, going through the distress of being
swallowed, then coming into contact with stomach
acids." The defendant was ordered to do 80 hours'
unpaid work and had to pay £1,200 costs.
Shocking footage on mobile phone
We often work with the police and other enforcement
agencies to combat animal cruelty. In one case in 2014,
shocking footage of a teenager attacking a cat and a dog
was discovered by the police on a boy's mobile phone
when he was arrested for unrelated criminal offences.
The attacks seem to have been carried out as a form of
entertainment, as the film of the cat being attacked was
named 'LOL', short for 'Laugh Out Loud'. The boy showed
no emotion during interview when the video footage
was played. He was banned from keeping animals for life,
given an 18-month youth rehabilitation order and a
three-month curfew order.