CONVICTED (2024) | Kirsty Yoxall, born 22 July 1990, of 37 Hastings Street, Grimethorpe, Barnsley S72 7EF – left her dog in an emaciated condition after months of neglect.
Six-year-old Staffy Tommy was found in a skeletal state at the home Yoxall shared with boyfriend Luke Leslie Stanbridge, born 16 September 1990 and originally from Rochester, Kent.
The RSPCA was contacted by police, who had attended Yoxall’s address on an unrelated matter.
RSPCA inspector Tamsin Drysdale said: “The dog was being held by a neighbour on the street who had wrapped the dog in a blanket.
“I would describe the dog as a male brindle Staffy who was in an emaciated condition, as the ribs, hips and spine were prominent.”
The inspector said the dog had been left in a bedroom with “multiple piles of faeces”.
A vet estimated he had been suffering for at least three months.
The court heard Yoxall had drug problems and the offending was unintentional.
Social media reports from around the time of Tommy’s rescue in November 2020 said the decomposing remains of a second dog owned by Yoxall were discovered in a carrier bag dumped at the side of a pub.
The dog, Jess, was reportedly microchipped to Yoxall’s ex-partner. Yoxall faced no charges in relation to Jess, and Stanbridge was not prosecuted for cruelty to either dog.
Sentencing | 12-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months; £548 compensation. Lifetime ban.