WEST YORKSHIRE
PERSONS
CONVICTED 93
TOTAL
CONVICTIONS 211
WEST SUSSEX
PERSONS
CONVICTED 11
TOTAL
CONVICTIONS 27
Investigating officer:
RSPCA Inspector
Christine Nisbet
Defendant:
Male 19, slaughterman
Offence:
Animal Welfare Act 2006 s4
Plea:
Guilty
Total convictions:
One
Sentence:
Disqualified from keeping
animals for life; 18 weeks'
imprisonment suspended
for 12 months; three-month
curfew; £980 costs.
Prosecuted by:
Tilly Bailey & Irvine Solicitors
Investigating officer:
RSPCA Inspector Andrew Kirby
Defendant:
Male 34, unemployed
Offences:
Animal Welfare Act 2006 s4
and s9
Pleas:
Guilty
Total convictions:
Two
Sentence:
Disqualified from keeping
mammals for life; six weeks'
imprisonment suspended
for 12 months; £1,000 costs.
Prosecuted by:
David Buck & Co Solicitors West YorkshireA mastiff-type dog was found to have extensive,
serious burns over most of his back, on his ears and
parts of his legs.
His skin was red, raw and peeling
and his ears dripped blood.
The dog's owner, a young man,
claimed that he was a stray, yet as
RSPCA Inspector Christine Nisbet
scanned him for a microchip, a
woman in the property called the
dog "Tyson". When asked how she
knew the dog's name, as he was
supposedly a stray, she denied
that she had said anything.
The man claimed Tyson had
accidently pulled an unattended
chip pan of hot oil over himself.
However, the vet's opinion was
that if this had been the case,
the burns would have been most
abundant to the front of the dog,
on his front legs, feet and the
front of his chest. Tyson's burns
were most abundant to the top
of his body, indicating that the oil
was split on him from above.
Tyson's injuries were so severe
that the vet euthanased him on
welfare grounds.
West SussexA man who claimed he had stepped on his 13-weekold
puppy by accident had been overheard shouting
at him in an angry, aggressive manner.
Witnesses heard the man
shouting threateningly then
heard the puppy, a Staffordshire
bull terrier-cross called Bonzo,
whimpering and screaming in pain
and fear. They then heard two
'thuds' followed by a whimper.
The man's defence was he had
accidently stepped back and
stood on Bonzo with all his
weight. He knew he had hurt
Bonzo as he said: "He made such
a horrible noise…like a screaming
noise." He claimed the incident
had only occurred 10 minutes
before RSPCA Animal Welfare
Officer Stephen Wickham arrived.
There were significant
inconsistencies between the
sounds that witnesses stated
they had heard and the claims
made by the defendant. However,
the RSPCA believed Bonzo was
caused to suffer deliberately
and the man remained a very
serious threat to any animal in
his possession. A disqualification
order was therefore sought.
Bonzo's broken leg had to be
amputated; however he has since
been found a loving new home.
Bonzo happy in his new home.
37
www.rspca.org.uk/prosecutions/annualreport