On 14 November 2022 witnesses saw Reid attack the unnamed dog in Sidwell Street, Exeter.
He pleaded not guilty but was convicted after a trial. No information in relation to the condition or fate of the victim is available.
Sentencing | 12-month conditional discharge’ costs of £100. No mention of ban.
Mother-of-four Gudge pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to her two pet bearded dragons.
The court heard how a concerned member of the public called the RSPCA to alert them to the fact the animals had been potentially abandoned in a property for at least six weeks.
After attempting to contact the missing tenant, an RSPCA inspector was let into the empty property on Petersham Road, Pennywell, Sunderland, by the landlord’s agent.
The dragons were found in very ill health before being taken to a vet.
A vet said both pets were very cold and had empty stomachs. The female dragon died overnight and the male deteriorated to such an extent he had to be put to sleep.
In his witness statement, the vet said: “Reptiles are reliant on their environments for adequate health and welfare, and thus not providing these results in suffering.
“Reptiles can survive long periods of starvation with minimal effects, however due to their quick deterioration it is clear that their needs have not been met, and thus they have been suffering, for some time – at least the six weeks reported, if not much longer.”
RSPCA inspector Suzanne Edgar said: “This was a very distressing incident which caused prolonged suffering – leading to the death of these two little pet bearded dragons.
“Abandoning an animal is never acceptable and should never be an option. We do understand that people’s circumstances may change, but if anyone is struggling to cope with their pet, we would urge them to reach out for help from experts, friends or family, or charities like ourselves.
“Exotic pets often end up in our care after people realise they’re not easy to care for, or once the novelty wears off.
“Others are rescued after they have been abandoned, escaped or been released on purpose, which then could be an invasive alien species risk to our native wildlife. Some species can be difficult for us to rehome, due to lack of suitable homes or interest.”
Sentencing | fined £120, ordered to pay a £48 victim surcharge and £200 in costs. Banned from keeping reptiles for five years.
The exotic pet known as Spike was emaciated and could have been left for TWO months in the flat after his heartless owner, Joe Timbs, moved out. Spike was “pale and very underweight”. He was in a collapsed state with his muscles “wasting away”.
The RSPCA visited the property in November 2022 to carry out an animal welfare check after receiving a report from a concerned member of the public.
RSPCA inspector Kirsty Keogh-Laws said: “When I arrived at the property, no-one answered the door. I called Mr Timbs who told me that he had moved out a couple of weeks ago, but had left his pet bearded dragon – named Spike – there. I was very concerned for the welfare of the abandoned animal.
“When the landlord’s agent let me into the property to check on the bearded dragon, it seemed darker and colder inside than it was outside as there was no light or heating. Once the power was switched on, I found the little animal in a vivarium.
“There was no food or water available, the flat was infested with fleas and there was an open box of live locusts loose in the property. Poor Spike appeared pale and very underweight – I could easily see his hips, ribs and spine and I could also make out the bone structure of his head. His eyes were almost closed and at that point, I believed he was dead.
“He felt very cold, but miraculously, when I touched him, he did slightly open his eyes, so I rushed him to a vet.”
The vet thoroughly examined Spike and found him in very poor condition; he had collapsed and was emaciated – weighing only 160g (5.6oz). She reported that the animal’s muscles were wasting away with the bones of the skull, spine, pelvis and tail clearly visible and that Spike could have been suffering for two months.
The little reptile was admitted to the veterinary surgery for intensive care and was placed under a heat lamp, rehydrated and fed. After five days, he had improved and his weight had increased to 260g (9.2oz) and after 12 days he had reached a healthy 320g (11.3oz), so Spike was ready to be moved to a rehoming centre.
Inspector Keogh-Laws added: “It was touch and go for Spike but he responded well to the expert care he received. Happily, after he was transferred to Reptilia – a specialist exotics rehoming centre – he found his forever home.
“This rescue had a happy ending, but it could have been very different. Abandoning an animal is never acceptable and should never be an option. We do understand that people’s circumstances may change, but if anyone is struggling to cope with their pet, we would urge them to reach out for help from experts, friends or family, or charities.”
In court, Timbs pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to Spike and was given a community sentence and three-year ban on owning any animal.
Sentencing | 18-month community order with 150 hours unpaid work, 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days; £114 victim surcharge cost. Banned from keeping any animal for three years (expires May 2026).
In a shocking case involving the “widespread and indiscriminate neglect” of dozens of cats and dogs on a breeding facility in rural Perthshire, Daanyaal Chowdhury was convicted of multiple animal cruelty offences but only received a community sentence.
Chowdhury’s company K9 Cube Limited provided animals to work in security and as sniffer dogs and had used South Cairnies Farm Cottage, Glenalmond, Perth PH1 3RY as a hub for a large-scale breeding operation.
Manchester-based Chowdhury was prosecuted after the premises were raided in a joint operation by the Scottish SPCA, Police Scotland and Perth and Kinross Council in October 2020 with more than 60 animals in poor health found in filthy and disease-ridden conditions.
Some 32 dogs, including multiple German Shepherds, were found living in their own waste in homemade kennels, starving and with no water, along with 17 kittens and 16 cats
The alarm was raised after Chowdhury sent a diseased German Shepherd pup named Sophie to the vets.
The Scottish SPCA were called in and a warrant was obtained to search the premises on October 28, 2020.
Inspectors found South Cairnies Farm Cottage to be ‘chaotic and hazardous’ with homemade kennels and various broken items scattered about.
An initial search found groups of puppies and kittens within three rooms of the cottage. No food or water was evident, the rooms were wet and dirty, as were the puppies and there was an extremely strong smell of faeces and urine.
The homemade kennels at the rear of the property housed a number of large breed dogs. The kennels, where they had shelter, were not watertight. They all were filthy and strewn with urine and faeces; most had no water or bedding.
Some of the dogs were living in outdoor kennels without natural light or flooring, while others had been completely exposed to the wind and rain.
The cats were kept in a separate building. Again, the living areas were dirty and covered in faeces and there was no water. The plyboard walls and roof of the structure were wet and mouldy.
A veterinary witness examined 32 dogs, 17 kittens and 16 cats at the property. They found multiple dermatological, respiratory, ophthalmic, and ear related diseases.
A Bengal cat called Bella, who had eye conditions, respiratory problems and neurological disease including severe ataxia had to be euthanised on welfare grounds.
A court hearing in October 2021 in relation to a Scottish SPCA civil case against Chowdhury’s firm K9 Cube heard that one dog required to be put to sleep, six suffered hip dysplasia, seven puppies had dermatitis, four had inflamed ears, six had dental disease or fractures, and the cats were suffering from conjunctivitis and ear mite infestation.
Of 49 puppies born from the dogs seized, eight passed away shortly after birth, one was put to sleep with a neurological condition and seven were born with congenital deformity and either passed away or were put to sleep as a result of their condition.
In court on May 25, 2023, Chowdhury admitted three animal welfare offences. These were that as the person responsible for animals, by act or omission he caused them unnecessary suffering by failing to provide adequate care or treatment and failing to get veterinary advice or treatment for health conditions.
Between April 20 and October 28 2020, he failed to treat:
He further pleaded guilty to causing suffering to 15 cats – including one which later died – which had ear mite infestations and conjunctivitis.
Chowdhury also admitted he failed to provide suitable accommodation for all 33 dogs, 17 puppies and 16 cats.
The court heard the animals were exposed to waste, loose and exposed electrical cables and garden debris hazards.
They did not have adequate resting areas, dry bedding or proper shelter from the elements.
He further failed to provide some of the animals with adequate ventilation, light, hydration and nutrition.
Chowdhury originally denied all charges, blaming a man who was employed to manage the site on his behalf.
He changed his plea to guilty on the morning of his trial, after accepting ultimate responsibility for the animals’ welfare.
He was ordered to complete 90 hours of unpaid work and will be subject to a one-year supervision order. He was banned from keeping animals for just five years.
Sheriff Garry Sutherland said he had decided against imposing a custodial sentence, after hearing that Chowdhury had lost his livelihood with K9 Cube now bankrupt and owing creditors some £360,000.
Following the hearing, bitter Chowdhury complained to court reporters that he had been treated “like a drug dealer” by police.
He said: “I wasn’t based at the farm. Because of Covid, I couldn’t travel and our business went to zero. All of our dogs were kennelled.
“I spent hundreds of thousands of pounds there, but we had six members of staff who weren’t doing their jobs correctly.
“Unfortunately, the charges were only brought against me, on the day I wasn’t there.
“I feel that has been a miscarriage of justice because why were the people there not charged?”
Chowdhury said the business had operated out of the site for three years previously, with no issues.
The Scottish SPCA slammed the sentence, however, with inspector Katherine Aitchison saying: “We are extremely disappointed at this lenient sentencing, considering the appalling conditions these animals were kept in.
“The dogs and cats in his care clearly suffered and a harsher sentence should have been given.”
She added: “Chowdhury has undoubtedly shown that he was not able to provide his animals with the care they needed, and we would have hoped this to be reflected in a ban on owning or keeping animals.”
Helen Nisbet, Procurator Fiscal for Tayside, Central and Fife, said: “This was a case of widespread and indiscriminate neglect where cats, dogs and puppies were caused unnecessary suffering.
“This suffering was entirely preventable and could have been avoided by proper management and timely veterinary involvement.
“Instead, Daanyaal Chowdhury failed to provide the animals he was responsible for with an adequate environment and kept them in terrible, inhumane conditions. He failed to provide proper care and treatment and protect them from disease.
“I would like to thank the Scottish SPCA and Police Scotland for their part in investigating and gathering evidence of these offences.
“The Procurator Fiscal will continue to hold to account those who would commit such crimes and we would urge anyone with information of animal neglect to contact the police or the Scottish SPCA.”
Most of the animals were rehomed by the SSPCA following its successful civil case against Chowdhury’s company in October 2021. The charity was granted permission to move on “or otherwise dispose of” the surviving animals after the court heard that its bills for the seizure and temporary accommodation for the animals was rapidly approaching £100,000.
K9 Cube Ltd – which claimed to have been adversely affected by the Covid lockdown – sought to have the animals returned as they were “integral assets” to the company.
K9 Cube Ltd was also find liable for the expenses of the court proceedings.
Sentencing | 12-month supervision order; 90 hours of unpaid work. Five-year ban on owning, keeping or dealing in animals (expires May 2028).
Sky News
BBC News
The Courier
Daily Mail
The Courier
In various interviews with the media, former employees of Daanyaal Chowdhury laid bare the shocking conditions dozens of dogs and cats were subjected to on his farm.
Speaking to local newspaper The Courier (see also here), Tiegan Walker said she cried and quit on her first day after seeing the “horrific” conditions animals were living in.
Tiegan responded to an advert posted on Gumtree for an “in house dog and cat carer and cleaner” offering £1,000 a month to live on the site.
The advert stated the owners bred German Shepherds.
The qualified animal care worker was left in tears after witnessing the “horrible” conditions the animals were being kept in and reported the owner to the authorities.
Tiegan said she had seen blind kittens walking in circles, a German Shepherd and her puppies forced to live in a cramped cupboard and a host of overbred females.
Chowdhury told Tiegan that at the height of business, before lockdown, he had around 125 animals living on the property.
She said: “I wasn’t allowed out the back because the dogs were too aggressive, but from what I could see there was around 10 but there must have been more because they were so noisy.
“Inside they must have had three litters of puppies plus their mums and then they had litters of kittens – about 20 of them.
“They were Bengal cats and they were kept in horrific conditions.”
She said the younger kittens were inside but the older cats were forced outside into kennels despite horrible weather conditions.
Tiegan added: “There were Akita puppies and I don’t even know where the mum was.
“They told me the Akita had killed her own puppies so they had taken them away and given them to the German Shepherd.
“It was all just horrific. They had the big German Shepherd, it was such a lovely dog, in a cupboard with the puppies.
“There was nowhere for her to move and there was no water for her.
“She was such a happy dog and for them to (do) that was just cruel.”
Tiegan said she also witnessed puppies living in the bathroom of the house and believes dogs were being allowed to mix-breed purely to create more puppies.
She said: “It’s just disgusting. I just don’t know how someone can do that.
“He told me that before I arrived there had been a litter of puppies who had all died from a disease.
“I just couldn’t believe it. I cried. It’s so sad.”
A second person, who wished to remain anonymous, spent less than half a day working at the property before fleeing in horror and alerting the authorities.
They said: “(I) was shown into a dirty house and asked to clean out a room with approximately eight German Shepherd puppies in it.
“It was covered in faeces and urine, and the puppies were wet and cold and (had) no food or water – until I took them some.
“No adult dogs were with them. There were three rooms like this then an outdoor kennels.
“These kennels were again dirty with no beds, food, water or any heating, there were two dogs to each kennel and were numbered rather than named.
“There were also a large number of dogs in a field that appeared older. These all weren’t German Shepherds.
“Some of the puppies did not seem in great health, some were missing eyes and limbs.”
A third worker, who also asked to remain anonymous, spoke exclusively to the BBC.
He stayed at the cottage in Glenalmond for many months and claims he was not paid. With no money and living in a rural location he was unfamiliar with, the worker said he felt stuck in the situation.
He also claimed to have buried many puppies that did not survive.
“A lot of puppies died,” he said.
“I buried a lot of puppies myself, dogs too.
“Because when you are alone, and I am not a vet, sometimes you don’t notice but some of them got sick and they died.
“A lot of puppies died because it was cold. I didn’t really know how to take care of puppies.”
He also believes the female dogs suffered from overbreeding which caused problems with their litters.
A local from the area said he reported the property to the Scottish SPCA around 18 months earlier.
“You can hear the dogs non-stop,” he said.
“At that time they were being kept in polytunnels, in cages, in intense heat.
“All the dogs were kept out the back but if someone came to look at a dog they would take them to the front.
“They had far too many dogs. If anyone went near the place they would all just set off.
“This has been going on for 18 months. I was one of the first people to contact the SSPCA and at that time there were about 30 dogs.”
The local added that during lockdown the property was being visited frequently by people buying puppies.
In late December 2020, The Courier published an in-depth article on the case and highlighted the apparent failings of the authorities to take action against Daanyaal Chowdhury at a much earlier stage.
Investigative journalists Sean O’Neil and Blair Dingwall reported they had seen letters from Karen Reid, chief executive of Perth and Kinross Council and Scottish SPCA boss Kirsteen Campbell where they admit that their respective officers had visited Chowdhury’s establishment in June 2019.
The documents stated both council officers and Scottish SPCA officers were happy with the way the dogs were being kept but noted some animals were currently housed in “temporary shelters”.
Ms Reid claimed in her letter, dated October 8, 2019, that “there is no evidence to suggest that a dog breeding licence is currently required”.
However in the same letter the chief executive stated: “(The animal welfare officer) considers the levels of noise from the establishment as typical from a dog breeding environment.”
It confirmed the local authority had received two complaints from different people regarding the property and an investigation was being carried out.
It said neglect allegations were “unsubstantiated” – but that officers would continue to visit the property over complaints alleging “animal cruelty, neglect and activities associated with puppy farming”.
Scottish SPCA chief executive Kirsteen Campbell stated in her letter, dated September 23 2019, that officers had viewed “several dogs” during a June 2019 visit which were being kept in “an adequate temporary shelter” while a permanent shelter was being built.
During a follow-up visit in July 2019, officers were “comfortable improvements had been made and were reassured the owner was keen to continue to make these”.
Ms Campbell wrote: “We can only act on the evidence we see and gather whilst investigating at the time.
“On every occasion we’ve visited, the owner has been fully cooperative and all advice regarding welfare and living conditions has been followed.”
The animal welfare charity refused to say if owners were given advance warning of visits by animal welfare officers.
Numerous locals hit out at the authorities’ responses and questioned why the raid took so long to take place.
Speaking in late December 2020 one resident said: “The whole thing has been going on for 18 months and we have been trying to get answers for 18 months.
“It’s a complete whitewash. The whole thing was brushed under the carpet.
“Why did all these dogs and puppies have to suffer for 18 months because of inaction by the SSPCA and animal welfare? Why? It is appalling.”
Another told The Courier: “I have never been so disgusted with the lack of acknowledgement and intervention from the very authorities which are there to help animals and law abiding citizens live in a safe, clean and peaceful environment.”
The individual claimed the Scottish SPCA and council were alerted at least 16 months earlier when dogs were being kept in “cages, boxes, boots of cars, vans and in chains”.
Another person from the area said: “At that time they were being kept in polytunnels, in cages, in intense heat.
“All the dogs were kept out the back but if someone came to look at a dog they would take them to the front.
“They had far too many dogs. If anyone went near the place they would all just set off.
“This has been going on for 18 months. I was one of the first people to contact the SSPCA and at that time there were about 30 dogs.”
Another local said he was not surprised by the lack of action in a case that had frustrated and horrified nearby residents for the past 18 months.
He said: “It doesn’t surprise me whatsoever.
“I wasn’t there when the raid happened but they had plenty of time to arrest him, people reported when he was in the cottage. Surely someone should have been arrested.
“In the early days there was 15 or so people staying there. I couldn’t say if the cottage was ever empty but there was always cars going up and down.”
The resident told the Courier he couldn’t understand the lack of information available to locals from the Scottish SPCA.
He said: “We still can’t get our head around that no-one will give us any answers.
“How many puppies were sold down there? It must have been hundreds. It’s very hard to describe when puppies are yelping and you know they’re being hit. It’s so upsetting to hear.”
Perth and Kinross Council defended the length of time taken to investigate, while the Scottish SPCA insisted it would not comment on what was an ongoing case at the time.
A council spokesman said: “Perth and Kinross Council takes animal cruelty or neglect extremely seriously and we thoroughly investigate all allegations regarding the mistreatment of animals we receive.
“Our animal welfare officers were involved in a joint investigation with the SSPCA and Police Scotland into allegations of commercial breeding in rural Perthshire that resulted in last month’s raid.”
Before moving to his current address in Longsight, Manchester, Daanyaal Chowdhury lived at 49 Lea Road, Chadwell St Mary, Grays RM16 4DD with relative Abdullah Mahmood-Al Hassan Chowdhury. On April 21, 2019 a local animal lover took to Facebook to raise concerns about the welfare of two German shepherd-type dogs kept at the property. The woman alleged that the dogs were not only starved, but also beaten.
Her post included a photograph she had taken of Daanyaal Chowdhury and an image of his logo for K9 Cube.
Another Facebook user then uploaded a video which they’d taken from Chowdhury’s Instagram profile under username life_explore007 (now defunct) which showed him laughing as he poured champagne over a litter of young puppies in a bathtub.
Chowdhury also shared this image to his Instagram account showing some of his security dogs on a site, with their living conditions looking far from ideal:
The original post was shared across multiple animal groups, causing outrage.
One man decided to take matters into his own hands and pay Chowdhury’s premises a visit. He was horrified by what he found:
Feeling the pressure after the original post went viral, Chowdhury, described by one Facebook user as a wannabe gangster who had allegedly bragged about facing an attempted murder charge, removed all traces of his personal and company profiles from social media.
The authorities also took action, but not on animal welfare grounds. Instead in July 2019 it was reported that the co-occupant of 49 Lea Road, Abdullah Al-Hassan Chowdhury, i.e. Daanyaal Chowdhury’s relative, had been fined around £12,000 by Thurrock Council for failing to comply with a noise abatement notice. The court heard that he had been keeping up to 20 dogs including Dobermans, Alsatians, Rottweilers and large crossbreeds at his home. and that they were being raised to work in the owner’s “security business”.
One neighbour told the local newspaper: “[The dogs] were living in what I can only describe as purgatory.
“No proper kennels, no decent food, no exercise or play.
“Often leaving these dogs shut up in make-do ‘kennels’ for days on end. It’s absolutely heartbreaking.
“We were told by people living nearer to this house how the dog mess was never cleared, and the yard was never washed down. The number grew until there were 21.
“Some would be taken to work at night and the others would be left outside, often in bad weather.
“I witnessed the dogs being kicked, kneed and hit with sticks.”
The final straw for many residents was when they witnessed two of the dogs fighting in early June 2021, with neighbours forced to spray a hose over the fence in an attempt to separate them.
Residents stated one animal was “left in a pool of blood”, and it is unclear what has happened to the dog now.
Although pleased a prosecution has been secured, the resident raised frustrations at what she felt was a lack of action by the RSPCA or police during the ordeal.
In September 2019 Abdullah Al-Hassan Chowdhury was also hit with a 10-year criminal behaviour order following further action by the local authority. The order means Chowdhury must not bring onto, or keep, any animals within any residential address, use any residential address for commercial or business purposes, or engage in any threatening or abusive behaviour.
Locals remained sceptical that the order would safeguard the welfare of a single dog and it was reported that the Chowdhurys had already taken the dogs elsewhere in any event.
A few months later, in October 2019, national newspaper the Daily Mail carried a report of eight starving dogs being kept in a garden at 132 St George’s Road, Dagenham, east London RM9 5JB, apparently without food, water or shelter.
A local animal welfare group called Scruffy’s Angels became aware of the dogs’ plight after reuniting a stray dog with the occupants, who were said to be Asian and owners of a canine security company (note: it’s not confirmed if this was K9 Cube or another firm).
A group volunteer took photographs and a video at the scene and published them on Facebook.
The volunteer wrote: ‘These are the pics from Dagenham – no food, no shelter, no water.
‘We have been waiting for the RSPCA to attend since yesterday despite numerous calls.’
They added: ‘The address is registered to a security company which has approximately five different addresses.’
Volunteers lowered buckets of food and water for the dogs, to at least keep them alive while waiting for the authorities to attend.
The RSPCA eventually attended and two of the eight dogs were taken into their care immediately with the remaining six also due to be collected.
The occupant of 132 St Georges Road was later named as Abdullah Aslam Baker, born November 1994, and the company name was Baker Guarding Limited. According to Companies House Baker has since resigned as a director the company. The company is still active, however, with an Asif Butt as its remaining sole director..
It’s not known if anyone was ever prosecuted in relation to the Dagenham dogs of if Abdullah Baker is linked to Daanyaal Chowdhury, but the pair have much in common.
Malcolm Leask, originally from Orkney but with links to Alva in Clackmannanshire, Stirling and Hartlepool, was convicted of three offences of animal cruelty alongside six assault offences, six of rape, one of attempted murder, two of threatening or abusive behaviour and one breach of the peace.
The crimes were committed at addresses in Orkney and Clackmannanshire between 2008 and 2019.
The former butcher and amateur musician subjected a family Labrador to repeated brutality, punching and kicking the animal on her head and body, kneeling on her stomach, deliberately blowing smoke in her face, putting his hands round her throat and choking her.
He kicked a border collie in the head and side, breaking one of his ribs. He also put a black bin bag over the dog’s head and tried to suffocate him.
Another time he picked the “scared and yelping” collie up by his armpits and threw him onto the floor, leaving him with permanent damage to his back legs.
He also attacked an eight-month-old German Shepherd puppy, punching him on the head and ribs and “stamping” on his head.
The dog’s owner said she once came in to find Leask “strangling” him.
Leask told her the pup “had been bad and needed to be punished”.
An allegation that he had battered two terrapins to death with a hammer was withdrawn by the prosecution.
Leask, nicknamed Beefy, because he previously weighed 31 stone, raped two women and tried to murder one of the victims by holding her head under water. He used his enormous weight to pin down one of his rape victims.
One woman told the court that she was repeatedly raped by Leask and subjected to physical violence when he punched, kneed and choked her.
He also lifted her toddler daughter and threw her on to a chair.
A second woman said she was subjected to “pure nastiness” by Leask.
He had shouted and swore at her young daughter and chased and grabbed her son.
Leask, now married, denied 19 charges but was convicted following a trial.
Defence counsel Gordon Jackson KC said Leask had no previous convictions and suffered traumatic experiences earlier in his life.
Sentencing Leask, Judge Lord Scott told him that his offences show “a serious, violent and abusive course of conduct.” The judge also remarked that he was “unrepentant” and lacking in insight into the considerable damage he caused.
Sentencing | 12 years’ imprisonment with eight years of supervision following his release. Placed on the sex offenders register indefinitely.
Rigby, who works as a tree surgeon and has links to Taunton, admitted failing to ensure that the needs of the 11-year-old dog, known as Bella, were met.
The RSPCA investigated after receiving a report of concern about Bella’s welfare.
She was examined by a vet who found her to be thin and lethargic with a tucked in abdomen and prominent hip spinal and shoulder bones.
She also had staining of her hair consistent with frequent licking due to irritation, most notably over her back end and feet, with associated hair loss and thickening and roughening of the skin.
The vet concluded it was most likely due to a flea infestation that would have caused annoyance and irritation preventing sleep and comfortable rest.
More detailed examination revealed both sets of eyelids were thickened and crusting indicating longer term skin disease.
Her right eye was held partially shut, indicating probable pain, while the left eye had clouding of the surface of the eyeball.
Examination of the abdomen revealed a firm grapefruit sized region suspected of being an inflamed bladder.
Bella also suffered muscle loss, mammary masses, dental disease, inflammation of her toes and reduced motion in her elbow and shoulder, while she was passing red urine.
X rays also revealed abnormalities within her chest, abdomen and spine.
Sadly they decided Bella had to be put to sleep because of the severity of her condition.
Sentencing | fined £460 and ordered to pay £184 victim surcharge and a contribution of £400 towards the RSPCA’s prosecution costs. Two -year ban on having anything to do with dogs (expires May 2025).
Four-year-old miniature dachshund Mable suffered chest injuries consistent with blunt force trauma while in the care of Dean Parkes. Her owner Fae Prangle, who had recently started a relationship with Parkes, took Mable to a vet who found signs of a high heart rate and abdominal pain. The vet told Prangle that Mable could go home but advised her to monitor her.
After Mable’s condition deteriorated, Prangle returned to the vet practice and a more thorough veterinary examination found that she had suffered fractures to three ribs and numerous pelvic fractures.
The vet likened Mable’s injuries to those resulting from a road traffic accident.
Prangle could provide no explanation for Mable’s injuries and the RSPCA was alerted.
The RSPCA attended Prangle’s home in Sherston, near Malmesbury, on 6 January 2022 and seized Mable, an 18-month-old miniature dachshund puppy called Matilda and Duke, a red Labrador belonging to Parkes.
Matilda was examined by vets and found to have sustained numerous pelvic fractures, similar to those suffered by Mable.
It transpired that Prangle had sought treatment for Matilda on 3 December, eight days after she said the dog had jumped off an embankment during a walk and started limping. But she claimed Matilda’sr limp and lameness were intermittent and said the pet didn’t show any signs of pain or serious injury.
Finding no evidence of serious injury, the vet released Matlida back to Prangle with seven days’ worth of anti-inflammatory medication.
Both Parkes and Prangle faced charges of causing unnecessary suffering to Mable and Matilda by failing to seek prompt vet care and failing to protect them from pain, suffering and injury.
Parkes and Prangle gave similar accounts of the circumstances surrounding Mable’s injuries and the timeline of events, but these were contradicted by Prangle’s sister, Heather Prangle.
After hearing expert evidence District Judge Joanna Dickens found Parkes not guilty of inflicting the injuries on Mable, stating: “He clearly had the opportunity to do it. I didn’t find his explanation very convincing.
“Whilst he could have done it, and certainly on the balance of probabilities did do it, I am not sure, and therefore I find you not guilty.”
However, he was found guilty of failing to protect Mable from pain, suffering and injury.
She added: “Mr Parkes was responsible for that animal when that injury happened. Something happened to Mable, I don’t know what happened, but I’m sure Mr Parkes knows.
“Whether he did it or someone else did it, either way, he didn’t take reasonable steps to prevent this happening.”
Prangle was found not guilty on both charges. Judge Dickens said that she “obviously loves the dogs” and took them to the vet when she had concerns about them.
Parkes, co-director of Empire Construction & Carpentry Limited, has a police caution for harassing an ex-girlfriend.
He will be sentenced in June 2023 and faces a ban from owning animals.
Mable and Matilda were released from Bath Cats and Dogs Home back to Prangle – who remains in a relationship with Parkes and now lives with him.
Polish national Zimny was caught on camera viciously killing much loved family pet Millie in the car park of the Cleeve School in the Bishops Cleeve area of Cheltenham. The horrific incident took place on 27 March 2022.
Zimny drove into the car park to collect his girlfriend Ewa Siebida, born 21 September 1980, who was waiting for him. He got out and let their two dogs out of the car who then chased the 12-year-old cat away.
The CCTV footage shows Zimny running after Millie before picking her up by her back legs or tail and swinging her up over his shoulder and slamming her onto the ground.
Horrifically, Millie’s ordeal wasn’t yet over. RSPCA Inspector Richard Carr, who investigated the case, said: “It is clear she is injured and unable to move but is still alive. He takes some steps away – but comes back and he then appears to kick her whilst she would already be in pain.
“She can be seen to move a few more times but then is motionless for a few seconds before dragging herself under the pallets.
“Neither Zimny nor his girlfriend bothered to check on her and instead got the dogs back into the car.”
A witness who had only seen part of what had happened rushed over to Millie, to find her lying still and in shock, so he rushed her to a vet.
Millie’s family were traced through her microchip and were informed the next day of her death.
It was believed at the time to have been as a result of a dog attack.
However, the school’s headteacher viewed the CCTV covering the car park and passed the footage of Zimny’s actions onto the police and RSPCA.
Millie’s body was exhumed for a post mortem which found a number of traumatic injuries including rib fractures, a collapsed lung, partial dislocation of three spinal joints and bleeding in the lung.
Zimny, who used a translator in court and is originally from Kostrzyn, Poland, claimed he had been bitten by Millie and said because his dogs were barking at her he thought the cat was attacking them.
Zimny had worked at Cleeve School as a cleaner for seven years before the attack, but resigned shortly after.
Solicitor Lindi Meyer, who prosecuted for the RSPCA said: “Millie did not die immediately but was then kicked by Zimny and she then dragged herself under the pallets where she died from her extensive injuries soon after
“[Zimny’s] actions were premeditated and in angry revenge.”
Zimny’s partner, Ewa Siebida, had worked for the school for ten years before resigning from her post as a cleaning supervisor on the same day.
Speaking to the Daily Mail she said Zimny “didn’t want to kill the cat. He didn’t come in there and he wasn’t going to do this.
‘[The dogs] wouldn’t have hurt the cat but they’d been barking quite loud in the carpark. The cat had run away and hid under a cleaning machine. I was going to take one dog and Tomasz had gone because one of them is only a young one.
‘She ran after the cat and was getting under the machine. Tomasz has gone to take the cat from under the machine and he put his hand under.
‘The cat – probably because he was frightened – he bites Tomasz, he cuts his hand and Tomasz has taken his hand from underneath the machine with the cat on his hand.
‘He didn’t know. There was just no time – he didn’t think what he was doing. It was just a reaction from his side.
‘The cat has bite him in his hand and he just reacted automatically because he didn’t know how to remove the cat so he just thumped him on the ground.’
Siebida continued: ‘I said [to him]: “Can you put yourself in the situation and think how you would feel if this happened to one of your dogs?”
‘He understands this and he knows about this. He didn’t want to do this.
‘He doesn’t even want to think about it. He knows how it would be for him if he was in that situation.’
She added: ‘I said it was unnecessary and he completely agrees with that. He didn’t want to do this. But he’s done it. He didn’t want this situation to go that way.
‘He’s quite reactive – so he can react and doesn’t think first.
‘And now he knows to stop for a minute and think what to do and not just straight away: bang! with a cat.’
‘It was so quick. I was there and not even five metres away and I hadn’t seen it. It was just two and a half minutes from when Tomasz came to the carpark.
‘It was unnecessary for everybody. This made us leave the job, it impacted our life and it’s going to stay in the head. It won’t go easy.’
She continued: ‘I got that statements from the family about Millie and read it from the top to the bottom. It’s breaking your heart, using words like this.
‘It was really bad so I don’t think the family will be happy that Tomasz has been in the court and I don’t think this will be enough for them.
‘I was myself surprised that he’s been treated as good. For me it was the best he could get out of the situation.
‘I can imagine that this is a really bad thing and really serious, especially in England. I was expecting that it would be really bad. I was even expecting that he can go to prison. We were expecting this. We have been ready for everything.’
Siebida now works in a bakery while Zimny does self-employed building work.
Sentencing | 18 week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months; 150 hours of community service. Disqualified from owning a cat for life but may appeal after five years (expires May 2028).
Neighbours called the RSPCA to report a foul smell coming from Parkes’ garage, and when officers arrived, they were able to peer through a gap in the rotten garage door and confirm there were live snakes inside.
Parkes turned up soon after and removed several dead snakes – three or four – from a single tank at the garage in the presence of RSPCA inspectors, telling them he ‘knew they had no power’, before police arrived to stop him.
After police arrived, inspectors found six live snakes, snakes eggs, and a tank containing the rotten carcass of a lamb.
Parkes confirmed they belonged to him, and that he was breeding them.
The live animals were recovered from the garage with the help of staff at Cheshire Reptile Rescue, who took charge of them on behalf of the RSPCA.
Sadly one snake, a yellow female known only as NN1, died soon after arriving at the sanctuary.
The remaining animals were later examined by vet Jennifer Quayle, who gave evidence to the court.
She said some were so underweight their spines were visible through their skin, and others were mite-infested and had respiratory infections caused by the cold.
A second vet Maria Kubiak said the snakes had probably not been fed for several months, which was ‘just one of a significant number of welfare concerns that should have been noticed, including no water, inadequate or no heating, and insufficient space for them to display natural behaviours’.
Sentencing | 18 weeks in prison, suspended for 18 months; court costs of £500. Banned from keeping any animal for 10 years (expires May 2033).
Vincent Parkes is also a backyard breeder trading under the name Dynamic Bull’z or Dynamic Bully’z.
Vincent Parkes, who now uses an online alias of Callum McCormack while continuing to flog puppies in conjunction with partner Hanna Buckley, was jailed for a total of 32 weeks after being caught driving while disqualified. This breach resulted in his suspended prison sentence being activated.
On Sunday June 25, 2023, Parkes was caught riding a Kawasaki motorbike.
After initially failing to stop for police, it was discovered the bike was also was uninsured and had no MOT.
Parkes pleaded guilty to the driving offences as well as charges of criminal damage and obstructing a police officer relating to an incident in Northwich on July 29, 2023.
Rae, who is a biological female, was prosecuted in relation to two-year old Cane Corso Dottie, who was found in an emaciated condition at her home. She also owned a German shepherd-type dog and a ferret.
RSPCA inspector Anthony Joynes visited Rae’s flat on January 26, 2023, following concerns from members of the public about the welfare of animals at the address. There was a particular concern about a large dog called Dottie that had recently escaped and was said to be extremely underweight.
In his evidence, Inspector Joynes said: “I could immediately smell a strong odour of urine and faeces coming from the address.
“A young female, dark brindle Cane Corso type dog that I would describe as being emaciated was brought into the communal hallway.
“I could see all of the bones of her spine, ribs and pelvic bones.
“I could also see boney processes of her skull where muscle had atrophied, which is only usually seen in extreme cases often involving seriously unwell or starving dogs.
“She wandered over with her head held low and with a lethargic and clumsy gait.”
Rae told Inspector Joynes that Dottie, whom she had owned for 18 months, had “always been an ill dog” and was “scared and kept weeing”. She had reportedly been healthier after giving birth to a litter but had soon returned to “skin and bone”.
She said she had a PDSA appointment the following day but could not show any evidence of this and enquiries with the charity showed this not to be true.
Dottie was seized by a police officer who had accompanied Inspector Joynes.
Rae agreed to sign over a ferret but refused to relinquish another dog at the property, an older Shepherd type called Diesel whose condition was not as bad.
An improvement notice was served and a wet and dry food parcel was provided to ensure there was sufficient food in the short term for him.
Magistrates heard how Dottie was immediately taken to a vet to be examined. Her claws were caked in faeces and she had dirty ear canals.
There were also a large number of circular scars – some of which were still scabbed – on her head, ears, neck and front legs which were thought to have been caused by her fighting over food with Diesel.
The court was told that a dog of her type should have weighed in the region of 30kg but Dottie was only 23.6kg. Her bones had become prominent and blood tests showed she was also anaemic.
In her evidence, the vet who examined Dottie and gave her a body condition score of just one out of nine, said: “I was able to get my fingers around her abdominal circumference; not something that would be typical in a dog of this size of a healthy weight.
“She was emaciated to the point that it was cachexic, with significant muscle loss which would have left her feeling weak.
“A dog does not become emaciated overnight, it takes several weeks to become this underweight from a previously healthy body condition and during this entire time she would have been suffering as muscle was metabolised for energy.
“It should have been obvious to the owner that this dog was underweight and not gaining weight and veterinary attention was needed to investigate this.”
The court heard how a refeeding programme was introduced once Dottie was at the RSPCA centre, and just eight weeks later she weighed 33kg.
Leigh Irlam, defending Rae, said her client has been “overwhelmed” since proceedings started and was “upset” at the outcome. Further mitigation referred to Rae “struggling to come to terms with another loss in their life.”
Ms Irlam added: “Tobias is young and struggling and needs some assistance from yourself today. They are a young person who has had a lot of turbulence in their life.”
It was heard that Rae, who has no previous convictions, had been through a period of homelessness, but now has a flat and claims benefits.
Magistrates were told Rae was making arrangements for the other dog to be rehomed to her grandfather . The RSPCA will be checking to ensure this has been done, otherwise Rae will be in breach of the disqualification order.
Speaking after the case, inspector Joynes said: “Dottie was without doubt one of the most underweight live dogs I’ve rescued in 14 years as an RSPCA inspector. Her body had begun to shut down, so it took a while for weight to start going back on, which was a worrying time for the staff caring for her.
“She is such a gentle soul and was let down terribly by her owner. She has since gained well over half of her initial body weight and is now doing really well and beginning to enjoy life again.”
Kay Hawthorn, the manager of the animal centre at Wallasey where Dottie is being cared for, said: “She really struggled when she first came to us and had all but given up.
“We fed her little and often but due to her being so weak and disinterested, it was a real struggle to get things moving again and give her something to live for.
“Her weight increased very slowly at first, but once she got started she became stronger and happier as the days went by.
“Now she is a different dog with a real zest for life and is a firm favourite with all the staff, who she insists stop and fuss over her, no matter how busy they might be!”
Dottie will be available for rehoming in the near future.
Sentencing | 18 week custodial sentence reduced to 12 weeks, suspended for two years; 30 days of rehabilitation activity’ ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £114. Disqualified from owning animals for six years (expires May 2029).
Although Rae was only prosecuted in relation to Dottie, it is believed that she may have owned five dogs and at least two cats, some of whom remain in her possession even after her conviction. A worried neighbour of Rae’s shared this photograph in the comments of our Facebook post, which she said was taken that same day (24 May 2023):
As another user commented, the dog, who is worryingly thin, is either pregnant, has recently given birth or is overbred.
It seems that Rae has been given 28 days by the courts to rehome them. Usually the RSPCA require details of the new owners and a home-check will be carried out.
This is a developing story with local animal lovers monitoring the situation.
