CONVICTED (2023) | smallholder Katrianna Jade Rich, born 4 May 1994, of 4 Lower Peasedown, Peasedown St John, Bath BA2 8AH – starved a horse over a prolonged period and left him to suffer.
Rich pleaded guilty to animal welfare offences following an investigation by the RSPCA
The court heard how Rich, who ran a smallholding with a number of horses, sheep and goats, was visited by RSPCA Inspector Daniel Hatfield and a field officer from World Horse Welfare on February 9, 2023 after welfare concerns were raised.
While there, they discovered a horse named Murphy, who despite being covered with three rugs, was in visibly poor condition.
Inspector Hatfield said: “I could still easily see his hip bones sticking through the rugs, appearing in really poor body condition and once the rugs were removed you could see just how poor bodily condition he was in.
“You could see his ribs, hips and spine easily and he stood there with his head stooped down looking extremely depressed and you could see the dips in the side of his head.”
A vet was called to examine Murphy, who was found to be emaciated with a body condition score of just 0.5 out of 5. He also had poor feet with overgrown hooves which were impacted with debris, including embedded stones, and poor dental health, including a fractured tooth.
He was certified as suffering by the vet and was taken into possession by police and passed into the care of the RSPCA.
Further tests found he had a high worm burden but showed nothing abnormal to account for the poor body condition, aside from prolonged starvation.
Murphy gained weight once in the care of the RSPCA by simply being given a normal diet.
Sentencing | nine week curfew; £400 costs. Banned from keeping horses for 10 years.
Katrianna Rich was only prosecuted in relation to Murphy, but there is evidence shared on social media that he was not the only horse neglected by her.
Horses before and after they were taken into Katrianna Rich’s care
Katrianna Rich is a self-employed beautician and manicurist who has traded under the names Rich’s Beauty Den and Katrianna Pinup Parlour.
She also provides pet services under the name The Smallholder Fairy Pet Services & Groomer and Canis Canine.
CONVICTED (2023) | Michael Thorpe, born c. 1972, of The Hen House, 42 Sconce Road, Articlave, Coleraine BT51 4JT – caused distress and suffering to a hen.
AirBnB host Michael Thorpe was convicted of one charge of causing “avoidable pain, distress or suffering” to an animal, a hen, at the time of killing.
Thorpe, who hails from the French city of Lyon, was also convicted of one charge of engaging in the restraint, stunning or killing of an animal without having the knowledge or skill necessary to perform those operations “humanely and efficiently”.
Finally he was charged with failing to hold a carcass that had not been slaughtered for human consumption in such a manner as to ensure that any animal or bird would not have access to it.
Thorpe pleaded guilty, and the judge ordered him to pay a £450 fine in addition to a £15 offender levy.
CONVICTED (2023) | serial offender Ewan David Wells, born c. 1959, of Bridge Farm, Hunningham, Leamington Spa CV33 9EB – for cruelty to sheep and cattle on his farm.
Wells, who was convicted of similar offences in 2011 and 2020, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a sheep, failing to clean out the areas where his animals were housed and failing to protect his animals from pain, suffering, injury, and disease.
The prosecution was brought by Warwickshire County Council Trading Standards.
The offences, which spanned a period between 1st March 2019 and 1st March 2022, were discovered following visits to the farm by Trading Standards Animal Health Officers and APHA Veterinary Inspectors.
One offence related to causing unnecessary suffering to a ewe and the other two to failing to take such steps as were reasonable in all the circumstances to ensure that the needs of animals for which he was responsible were met to the extent required by good practice.
The court heard that there was a heavy accumulation of muck on the farm, three feet deep in some areas, which would make it difficult for animals, including young calves to walk. In some places muck had reached the same height of the rims of water troughs leading to constant contamination of the water within.
Old, rotten hay and silage had been left at the bottom of a feed ring from which animals were seen eating and in some areas silage and fodder beets were fed from the floor where they were contaminated with faeces.
A shed containing around 200 ewes and some new born lambs had insufficient numbers of water buckets or other water provisions.
Cattle buildings were in poor repair and cattle had access to areas of the farm that had barbed wire on the floor and piles of scrap metal.
Wells’ farm was inspected after he had been prosecuted in 2020 for causing unnecessary suffering to a cow. When problems were found, the tenant farmer was given an opportunity to put things right but failed to do so.
Sentencing | 16 week custodial sentence suspended for 12 months; 15-day rehabilitation requirement; contribution of £6000 towards prosecution costs and £122 victim surcharge. Disqualified indefinitely from owning, keeping or participating in the care of any animals except domestic dogs and cats (can appeal after 28 June 2028).
CONVICTED (2023) | Welsh farmer Philip Edmund Smith, Cefn Ynysoedd, Llanfaglan, Caernarfon LL54 5RA – for multiple animal welfare offences leading to 32 sheep being euthanised.
Philip Smith, who was convicted of similar offences in 2013, pleaded guilty to animal welfare breaches and for failure to dispose of sheep remains.
Smith subjected animals to unnecessary suffering and failed to take the appropriate and reasonable steps to secure the needs of the flock. This included the need for animals to be protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease.
The court heard that of the 150 sheep seen by officials on his farm, approximately 75% were found to be severely lame and unable to bear weight on at least one limb. Tragically, 32 had to be euthanised due to the severity of their lameness.
An album of photographs capturing the shocking conditions and unnecessary suffering of the animals was shown to the court.
Officials were horrified by the condition in which animals were found. It was their opinion that the sheep were experiencing unnecessary pain and suffering; and the defendant should have sought veterinary assistance much earlier.
Animal health officers from Gwynedd’s Trading Standards Service and the Animal & Plant Health Agency (APHA) veterinary team visited the farm several times during July and August 2021 following an anonymous tip-off by a concerned member of the public reporting lame sheep on land at Cefn Ynysoedd.
During the investigation officers from Gwynedd Council’s Trading Standards Service were subjected to threatening and abusive behaviour by Smith.
During the initial inspection a collapsed ram was discovered in one farm building. He was severely lame with foot-rot, had severe chronic skin lesions and inflammation of the larynx that would have caused a degree of difficulty breathing. It was the veterinary officer’s opinion that the ram was suffering unnecessarily and needed to be euthanised to prevent any further suffering.
A post-mortem examination carried out on the ram indicated that the skin lesions were likely to have been present for several months and concluded that there was no evidence of paring of the feet to remove the overgrown horn.
Several other sheep were found to be suffering with irreversible foot lesions caused by conditions that may have been treatable had they been identified and treated sooner. Several of the sheep were also suffering from fly strike and had live maggots in their feet.
Sentencing | concurrent suspended prison terms of 26 weeks for the six section 4 Animal Welfare Act offences and 12 weeks for the two section 9 Animal Welfare offences. 20-hour rehabilitation course. Fined £400 for the six Animal By-Product Regulation offences and ordered to pay £4,475 in costs and a victim surcharge of £128. Disqualified from owning, keeping, transporting or dealing in farmed animals for five years (expires June 2028).
CONVICTED (2023) | Eirlys Thomas and Dewi Aeron Thomas of Cildywyll Farm, Llanddowror, Carmarthen SA33 4HP – for the mistreatment of livestock.
Neither Dewi Thomas (pictured) or his mother Eirlys Thomas were banned from working with animals despite causing enormous suffering to cattle and sheep on their disgusting farm
Mother and son Eirlys and Dewi Thomas were prosecuted for the unnecessary suffering of livestock after concerned welfare officers visited their farm and found animals in an ‘appalling’ condition.
Following welfare concerns, an unannounced visit was carried out at Cildywyll Farm in February 2022 by Carmarthenshire County Council’s Animal Health Officer and a vet from the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).
As the officers approached the farm from the drive, they came across a very thin, brown cow that was lying down in a field by herself. The cow had just calved. The cow was still alive but her calf had sadly died. The cow had not been properly observed or monitored during the birthing process, resulting in the loss of the calf.
In a shed on the farm, officers found another cow lying in muck laying on her right-hand side with her legs tucked up. It was first thought the cow was dead until she was seen to be breathing. The cow was in poor body condition, with no evidence of food or water in front of her and no dry area to lie down. Behind the cow, and against a wall, lay her calf which had died. The cow had been lying in that state, untreated since she had calved 5 days prior. After advice from the farm’s vet, the cow had to be euthanised.
Within the calf pens, was a downer calf that could not get up. After assessing the calf, it was advised to euthanise the calf due to severe pneumonia. Several other calves also needed to be treated for pneumonia but had not received any veterinary treatment.
In the sheep shed, officers found several untreated lame sheep. Two downer ewes were assessed by a vet and it was advised that both ewes were euthanised.
The cows, calves and sheep had no access to fresh drinking water and drank immediately when the officers gave them water.
There were 19 cattle carcasses and 3 sheep carcasses laying around the farm in various stages of decay where wildlife and farm animals, including pigs, had access to the carcasses.
The Thomases both pleaded guilty to four counts of section 4 and three counts of section 9 offences of the Animal Welfare Act 2006, by causing unnecessary suffering.
They also failed to dispose of Category 1 material without undue delay and did not ensure that no animal or bird have access to the carcasses.
Finally, they failed to report death within seven days and therefore failed to comply with The Cattle Identification (Wales) Regulations 2007.
Sentencing | 20-week custodial sentence, suspended for 24 months, concurrent on each charge; 200 hours of unpaid work, 25 days of Rehabilitation Activity Requirements; costs of £2,700.00.
CONVICTED (2023) | farmer Diana Felicity Swabey, born c. 1961, of New House Farm, Hollocombe, Chulmleigh EX18 7QH – for the shocking neglect of 200 animals in her care.
Diana Swabey admitted 16 charges under the Animal Welfare Act relating to 81 horses and ponies, four goats, seven rabbits, a goose, cattle, sheep and pigs, following an investigation and prosecution by the RSPCA.
Officers from the RSPCA and World Horse Welfare went to New House Farm, Chulmleigh, in March 2022 following welfare concerns for a large number of animals. They were later joined by a vet and Devon and Cornwall Police to carry out a joint investigation.
What they discovered were animals living in filthy conditions, some with no food and bedding, emaciated ponies, a dead ewe and tumbled down fencing creating a hazard.
During the visit, the RSPCA said Swabey, who had a small bottle of alcohol spirits in her back pocket, used a pitchfork to threaten its officer by pointing it towards her face and squirting water at her. She was also abusive to police at the scene.
When a bull was seen lying down Swabey said someone would soon take for kebabs.
RSPCA Inspector Claire Ryder, who investigated for the animal welfare charity described what she saw when she arrived at the address. She said: “There were two horses in stables standing in their own faeces and urine.
“Next to a horse there were three pigs with no food or water in a dirty environment living in their own filth with no bedding and empty feed containers. In the top stable near the entrance there were a further two pigs again with no food or water living in their own filth.
“In the first field to the left of the property there were a lot of hazards such as barbed wire, old metal, vehicles and fencing. This was scattered over the top part of the field where the ponies could get to. There were many fields and the grazing was extremely poor. There was no hay or signs of any hay being put out for the animals. As we walked around the fields I noticed fencing had come down and the barbed wire was lying on the floor.
“We came to one field where there were approximately 27 ponies in it. Most of the ponies were nervous and you could only get so close before they walked off. The ones that we could see you could clearly see that their hips and spines were protruding and the ribs were visible even through their winter coats. Their coats were dirty and unkept. There was no extra food provided, just the poor grazing.”
She said another field had been blocked off. It contained 11 ponies and sheep. There was one dead ewe and a dead lamb. The sheep appeared poor and quite a few were lame. A lamb seemed to be having problems straightening its legs.
“In the stables at the end of the yard there were poultry in filthy conditions with no food; they had a small amount of dirty water, Claire said. “Next to this stable there were four goats that were in poor bodily condition, no food or water, a dirty environment with a scattering of straw bedding.
“The bull was lying down and I could see its leg was swollen. She said she didn’t want to pay the money for the knacker man and knew someone who would take it for free for kebabs. The bull was lying in a dirty bed with no food or water.
“She then took me to a barn where I could see cattle of various ages and sexes. You could not see their feet due to the amount of faeces they were standing in. They were filthy due to lying in their own mess.”
“In a barn across the road there were cattle who again were living in their own mess knee deep. Young cattle were in there and there was no bedding for them to lay in.
“At the back of the barn there were two emaciated ponies. Living in filthy conditions with no food or water. There were also calves that had no food or water in with the ponies. In a separate bit blocked off there were three pigs that were in poor bodily condition. They had no food, water or bedding. They had a lot of hair loss and were scratching a lot.”
RSPCA officers were joined by equine specialists from World Horse Welfare and the Mare and Foal Sanctuary during return visits to assist in the rescue of the animals who had been seized by police.
The vet said in their witness statement: “It is of my opinion that the majority of these horses have suffered neglect with the remaining animals likely to end up suffering if they had remained in those circumstances.
“The main concerns are that of very poor body condition and dental issues due to inadequate nutrition and internal parasitism, lice infestation, rain scald caused by inadequate shelter and care, and lack of farriery attention. All conditions found above are easily preventable through routine care and preventative treatments.”
The court hear in mitigation that this was not a case of deliberate animal suffering or deliberate neglect of duty but an unintentional failure. At the time, Swabey was caring for her elderly mother and had suffered with Covid on three occasions and had turned to alcohol to help her cope.
Sentencing | 16-week suspended prison sentence; 150 hours of unpaid work; 45 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days; costs of £400. 10-year ban on owning animals. Deprivation order on the animals still in her care, and given three months in which to rehome or sell them.
CONVICTED (2023) | Derek Arthur Whittall, born August 1965, of Oaklands Farm, Weston-Under-Redcastle, Prees, Shrewsbury SY4 5LR – allowed his staff to kick, push and abuse calves at a livestock centre.
Whittall, co-director with wife Mandy Whittall, of Oaklands Livestock Centre Ltd, pleaded guilty to all six charges brought against him.
He admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a bovine calf whilst it was being unloaded from a trailer. He also admitted being responsible for two different people who repeatedly kicked, aggressively pushed or threw calves down a ramp whilst they were being unloaded from a trailer
In April 2021, undercover footage from animal rights organisation Animal Justice Project was released which showed animals being thrown down trailer ramps; kicked; pushed; dragged by their ears – and the charity said, being deprived of food and water for long periods.
Some of the calves came from farms contracted to the dairy giant Müller, whose headquarters are located nearby in Market Drayton. Müller released a statement saying that it had instructed farmers to cease supplying the centre with immediate effect.
The court documents also showed Whittall indicated pleas of guilty to removing ear tags from cattle without permission.
All of the charges Derek faced related to incidents that took place on October 10 and 11, 2020. The solicitor for Animal Justice Project said Shropshire Council pursued the charges against Whittall that resulted in a conviction.
A Shropshire Council spokesperson said Oaklands Livestock Centre Ltd is no longer in operation as a company.
Claire Palmer, director of Animal Justice Project, said: “The seriousness of Derek’s crimes cannot be overestimated.
“Not just the removing and inserting of the ear tags in the ears of calves – at a time when farmers are grappling with a Tuberculosis (TB) crisis – but allowing the abuse of calves on his holding. Our cameras showed vulnerable calves at Oaklands Livestock Centre, just a few days old, being treated like trash apparently because they were destined for the abattoir.
“This is indefensible and the sad, everyday, reality for so many farmed animals in this country. Consumers need to be aware so they can make informed food choices as, ultimately, the buck stops with them.”
Edie Bowles, Solicitor for Advocates for Animals said: “Following a hard-hitting undercover investigation by our client, Animal Justice Project, we are delighted that Shropshire Council pursued charges which resulted in a conviction, including a five-year disqualification order from keeping bovine animals. A recent report by The Animal Law Foundation revealed a systemic problem with violations of animal legal protections for farmed animals going unenforced.
“Shropshire Council’s decision to pursue this case should therefore be celebrated and we hope that more local authorities will follow this example and do more to protect farmed animals in future.”
Sentencing | 18-month community order with 200 hours of unpaid work and 10 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days; ordered to pay the prosecution costs of £11,855.34 within 12 months. Disqualified for a period of five years from owning or keeping bovine animals (expires April 2028).
CONVICTED (2023) | Hayden Walter Fortune, born c. 1975, of Pyethornes Farm, Wigglesworth, Skipton BD23 4SB – for the shocking neglect of pigs and cattle on his farm.
An investigation by North Yorkshire Trading Standards officers revealed appalling neglect and suffering on Hayden Fortune’s farm
A visit to Pyethornes Farm by the trading standards animal health team in April 2022 uncovered “dystopian” levels of neglect and suffering with cattle and pigs kept in appalling conditions. No feed, water or dry bedding was available to animals and numerous carcasses were left in various states of decay around the pens, which still housed live animals.
Conditions were so poor that it was not possible to identify the exact number of carcasses on site but it was estimated to exceed 300.
Officers had to climb over mounds of dead pigs to reach pens where surviving animals were standing in knee-deep manure.
Fortune was convicted of numerous offences under the Animal Welfare Act, including:
Causing unnecessary suffering to pigs by exposing them to the carcases of others, maintaining them in flooded pens with lurid water, providing no dry area and a lack of feed and drinking water.
Having a level of manure in the bovine area that made animal movement difficult, exposing cattle to the carcases of others, providing no dry area, and providing a lack of feed and drinking water.
Housing animals in a dangerous environment with hazardous material, including sharp wood and metal.
Sentencing | 12-week prison sentence suspended for 18 months; £3,000 compensation and £1,000 towards costs. Disqualified from keeping livestock for life.
CONVICTED (2023) | John Edward Pritchard, born c. 1975, of Enham Green, Shaftesbury – caused unnecessary suffering to a group of young calves on their way to a slaughterhouse.
Livestock haulier Pritchard was in charge of transporting 35 calves on a two-hour journey from a farm in Sherborne, Dorset, to an abattoir in Wiltshire.
However, his double-decked livestock trailer was only designed to carry sheep when both decks were in use, because there was insufficient headroom on the lower deck for calves to stand.
When he arrived, the calves were unloaded by a member of staff who immediately noticed that the animals on the lower deck had injuries to their backs where they had bumped against the roof supports of the upper deck during the journey.
Many of the calves suffered injuries when they stumbled and fell down the trailer ramp which was twice as steep as it should be
Some of these injuries were up to 10cm long and an examination of the carcasses after slaughter revealed deep bruising.
The official vet at the slaughterhouse examined the calves and concluded that they had been caused unnecessary suffering.
CCTV footage of the calves being unloaded was shown to the court and this also revealed that the ramp angle for the upper deck was far too steep for calves to safely walk down.
The maximum permitted angle for such a ramp is 20 degrees but Pritchard’s was more than 40 degrees, with the CCTV showing the calves stumbling and falling down the ramp.
The court heard that to transport the calves safely and legally, Pritchard should have only used the lower deck on the trailer with the upper deck folded away.
This would have meant doing two journeys to the slaughterhouse but instead it was deemed he decided to put profit before animal welfare.
The prosecution was brought by Dorset Council following an investigation by its Trading Standards team.
Sentencing | 18-month conditional discharge; prosecution costs of £6,495 plus a £22 court surcharge.
CONVICTED (2023) | Janusz Artur Wadzinski, born c. 1993, of Dykeside Cottages, Birnie, Elgin IV30 8SU – repeatedly ran over a pig with a quad bike before beating her with a four-foot stick.
Farmworker Janusz Wadzinski rode a quad bike over a screaming sow around six times during his employment with Karro Foods. Image source: Press & Journal
Farm worker Janusz Wadzinski was found guilty of causing an animal unnecessary suffering after witnesses saw him repeatedly run over a screaming sow with a quad bike before thrashing her with a long stick.
The court heard how Polish national Wadzinski had been working for Karro Food Group at Clackmarras Farm, Longmorn, Elgin for six years.
On March 20 2020, he was seen chasing a single pig on his quad, striking her hind legs with the bike until she fell and then running the quad up onto her her back before rolling off of her.
A mother and daughter out walking their dogs saw him do this at least six times and the elder of the women went on to watch in horror as he then “whacked” the pig repeatedly with a long stick.
Witness Claire Hendry told the court: “He was driving up behind her, knocked her back legs to knock her down and as she fell he was rolling up on her back and rolling off again.
“He repeated this more than six times. He was shouting but we didn’t understand as it was in Polish.
“There was a lot of shouting and swearing. We are animal lovers so it was horrific, absolutely horrific the way he was coming for her. I was a state.”
As Mrs Hendry ran down the field towards Wadzinski she saw the pig being herded into a hay bale enclosure where she was further abused.
“I will never forget that white stick,” she said. “It was three-four feet long. He picked it up and he was beating and beating her. Every time you heard a whack there was a squeal.
“This is a man who is meant to be in charge of these animals’ welfare and this is what he was doing to her.
“The pig was traumatised and squealing. I was screaming and shouting ‘oi’ at him and he eventually stopped and came over.
“He folded his arms and just said ‘what’.”
When the woman told Wadzinski he shouldn’t be chasing and striking the animal, he replied: “She not do as she’s told”.
When she said that was no excuse for his behaviour, he replied: “I go now and I kill her. I can because I work here.”
Lauren Hendry also witnessed the quad bike incident and told the court it left her in tears.
After briefly returning home she was so “shocked and disgusted” that she went back to the farm and spoke to a farm manager, who told her: “I will have a word with him”.
“I felt like I wasn’t being believed,” she added.
Wadzinski was also seen repeatedly striking the animal with a four-foot stick. Image source: Press & Journal
Taking to the stand himself, Wadzinksi told his defence lawyer Iain Maltman he continues to be employed at the farm but for the last six months has worked as a maintenance man rather than with the pigs.
He denied being on the quad behind the pig, denied hitting her with a stick and suggested he and his colleague worked side-by-side permanently to move the pigs from one paddock to another.
When the sow wouldn’t go, he claimed he was told to get a trailer to move her and that the incidents of abuse simply never happened.
He told Mr Maltman: “I didn’t say I would kill the pig. I said she was causing problems and most likely she would have to be shot.”
He claimed he said that in response to racist remarks being made towards him by Mrs Hendry and retaliated because he was “upset and tired”.
Karro’s breeding herd manager Cameron Fordyce, 53, assured the court Wadzinksi had no authority or means of killing any pigs and said having inspected the animal himself he saw no signs of injury.
However, Sheriff Gordon Fleetwood delivered his verdict immediately, rejecting the evidence of defence witnesses.
“In relation to charge one, I have no doubts you are guilty as libelled,” he told Wadzinksi.
He fined Wadzinksi, who lives in work-provided accommodation at Dykeside Cottages, Birnie, Elgin, £500 and banned him from keeping or working with animals for just one year.
A spokesman for the company Karro Food Limited (formerly Grampian Country Pork) told the Press and Journal that “appropriate action will be taken” following the verdict.
He said: “As a responsible employer, Karro Food Limited ensures high welfare standards of pigs on our own farms and throughout our supply chain.
“We do not condone or tolerate animal cruelty in any form.
“We note the court’s guilty verdict in relation to Janusz Wadzinski’s treatment of the animal in question and appropriate action will be taken.”
Mr Maltman said this ban could mean the end of Wadzinski’s employment.
Sentencing | fined £500. One-year ban on keeping or working with animals.
Following Janusz Wadzinski’s conviction for pig cruelty, several local people took to Facebook to contradict Karo Food’s claims that they take animal welfare seriously and won’t “tolerate animal cruelty in any form”.
One stated: “Karro’s farms all over are terribly kept .. I used to work with a contractor that went in to clean all the bedding from under where the huts was and I constantly found dead piglets just left … to rot”.
We collate data on animal cruelty convictions in the UK
