CONVICTED (2024) | Brian Simpson, born c. 1984, of Pilmott Road, Bolton BL1 8TW – mistreated exotic pets, with three of the four animals dying.
An RSPCA Animal Rescue Officer found one dead gecko, a further two live geckos and a ‘very thin bearded dragon’ at Simpson’s home.
An RSPCA statement said: “The court heard that in November 2023, the RSPCA visited a property in Pimlott Road to check on the welfare of some exotic pets, following a call to the charity reporting concerns about the animals.
“Simpson answered the door and RSPCA Animal Rescue Officer (ARO) Alison Wilford was shown around.”
She said: “As well as a cat and two dogs, I found one dead gecko, a further two live geckos and a very thin bearded dragon at the property.
“There was no food or water provided to the reptiles, and only one of the vivariums had a light source in it. The defendant told me that the last time he had seen the dead gecko alive was two days before.”
Simpson signed over all the animals into the care of the RSPCA and the pet reptiles were taken to a vet who examined them.
The vet, Dr Federica Fogli, said the two live leopard geckos and the bearded dragon had very poor bodily conditions. They were emaciated, dehydrated and extremely cold, and were given fluids and ‘supportive feeding’, the RSPCA added.
One of the leopard geckos subsequently died. The third leopard gecko had already passed away when he was brought in. Dr Fogli said that in her opinion, the condition of the animals indicated chronic poor husbandry and suffering.
She said: “This degree of emaciation and dehydration would have been reached over the course of several weeks. Additionally, conditions such as metabolic bone disease occur after a long period of malnutrition and poor husbandry.”
In mitigation, Simpson said his partner left him five weeks before and he had pleaded with her to take the animals with her as he couldn’t cope.
Ms Wilford said: “It was Simpson’s legal responsibility to properly care for these pet reptiles and he failed to do this. Their suffering could have easily been avoided.
“The RSPCA urges anyone struggling to take care of their animal to ask for help and act on advice, rather than neglecting them and leaving them to suffer.”
Simpson pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to three leopard geckos and one bearded dragon and was sentenced at Bolton Magistrates’ Court on Monday, June 3, 2024.
Sentencing | £200 fine and £80 victim surcharge. Five-year ban on keeping any animal as a pet (expires June 2029).