Investigating officer:
RSPCA Inspector Suzanne Smith
Defendant:
Female 47, shop assistant
Offences:
Animal Welfare Act 2006 s4 and s34
Pleas: Guilty
Total convictions: Three
Sentence:
Disqualified from keeping equines
for life; 16 weeks' imprisonment;
£2,000 costs.
Prosecuted by:
Nicholas Sutton Solicitors
Kiki's story -
rescue to royaltyKiki, an American bulldog rescued by the
RSPCA from his brutal owner, was among the
dogs chosen to meet His Royal Highness the
Duke of Gloucester at the opening of RSPCA
Birmingham Animal Centre and Hospital.
When the RSPCA received reports
about a dog being beaten, Kiki was found
cowering in a garden in torrential rain. He was
very lethargic, with prominent red bruising on
his head and body that showed through his
coat. He was lame in two legs and concussed.
As well as bruising to his head, ears and back,
a vet found lacerations in Kiki's mouth on the
inside of both cheeks. His tongue appeared
purple and was extremely bruised on the
underside, a very unusual injury that the vet
did not believe possible to inflict without a
direct blow to the underside of the tongue
when the mouth was open. From the position
of the bruises, the vet considered Kiki had
sustained at least three separate impacts.
X-rays revealed Kiki's left foreleg was broken in
a way that was consistent with a sharp blow
with a blunt object to the outer side of the
leg, for example a kick.
The vet concluded the trauma indicated a
savage and sustained beating of at least 10
punches to the head, followed by further blows
to the dog's chin and several kicks or blows to
his back and tail. The vet remarked that it was
fortunate that the beating had not killed Kiki,
yet during the whole examination the dog was
calm, friendly and did not show any aggression,
even when his sore areas were handled.
When interviewed, the defendant said Kiki had
defecated on the floor and chewed up some
of his games. He said he had "lost it" when Kiki
urinated and admitted to punching him twice
in the head. He admitted that to punish Kiki
he would "wet him up", which involved hosing
him with cold water for five minutes while
he was chained up, using his foot to hold Kiki
down. Kiki was underweight and he said this
was due to him not being able to afford dog
food. He admitted he would shout at Kiki and
stamp his foot to scare him.
The chair of the bench told the defendant:
"This is a most distressing case." She referred
to "high levels of cruelty and brutality".
The defendant expressed no regret for his
behaviour and showed no remorse. His
attitude was that Kiki was a nuisance, so he
"punished" him.
Speaking after the case RSPCA Inspector
Scott Vanes said: "This is one of the worst
beating cases I have ever dealt with. This poor
dog suffered prolonged and severe levels of
violence at the hands of this man."
When His Royal Highness the Duke of
Gloucester officially opened the RSPCA's
flagship animal centre and hospital in
Birmingham in 2014, Kiki was there to meet him.
Kiki has now been found a loving new home,
where he can be happy for the rest of his life.
He too had tapeworm and was showing
the symptoms of an infection.
Once recovered, the foal was spotted
by double Olympic gold medal winner
Charlotte Dujardin. Charlotte called him
Santa and asked her sponsors for a rug
small enough for him - he was so tiny he
had to wear a dog coat for warmth. "I fell
in love with him when I first saw him and I
said 'I'll rescue him'," said Charlotte. "There
are hundreds of horses and ponies which
need homes, it has really opened my eyes to
what's going on.
"It would be great if more people could
rescue. You don't need to breed equines;
there are some lovely horses and ponies out
there. I'm really pleased I was able to help
the RSPCA. Santa's going to have a really
great life, he's going to be a field companion
for one of my younger horses, Vogue, and
who knows what will happen in the future
as he grows, maybe he could be another
Olympic champion?" Kiki greets HRH the Duke of Gloucester.
Kiki - battered and subdued.
Santa and Frank recovering.
Investigating officer:
RSPCA Inspector Scott Vanes
Defendant:
Male 27, unemployed
Offence:
Animal Welfare Act 2006 s4
Plea: Guilty
Total convictions: One
Sentence: Disqualified from keeping
animals for life; 16 weeks' imprisonment
suspended for one year; 12-month
supervision order; attendance at a Thinking
Skills Programme; £1,729.27 costs.
Prosecuted by:
Nicholas Sutton Solicitors
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