CONVICTED (2013) | Cy Whitham, born 13 June 1992, most recently (2018) of Blenheim Road, Ipswich, and his mother Millie Geraldine Whitham, born c. 1965, of Defoe Road, Ipswich – abandoned a dog to starve to death in her own filth; two dead dogs found in a shed at the property
Cy and Millie Whitham were jailed after their flea-infested dog was found in an Ipswich flat starving to death in her own filth. The young Staffie weighed half her recommended weight. Minimal food and water were available to her.
The dog, known as KD at the time, was found by a pest controller at the flat surrounded by excrement.
Speaking after the hearing, RSPCA Inspector Jason Finch said: “When I saw her I couldn’t believe she was still alive.
“When the pest controller opened the door, the dog came out and immediately started trying to scavenge for food or anything that she could eat and he gave her a couple of biscuits.
“I’ve not seen a dog that thin for at least 10 years – the poor girl looked like a bag of bones.”
The dog, who was later renamed Lottie, gained weight in the care of the RSPCA,
The bodies of two other decomposed dogs were also discovered in a shed at the property.
RSPCA Inspector Jason Finch estimated the dogs’ corpses could have been rotting for one month and said they were too decomposed to identify their breed or their cause of death.
But the Whithams both denied any involvement with the dead dogs found at their former home.
In September 2014 violent thug Whitham was sent to jail for eight months for beating up an ex girlfriend. Then in February 2018 he was given 28 months in custody for dealing heroin and cannabis.
Sentencing:
Cy Whitham – 18 weeks in jail;
Millie Whitham – 12 weeks in jail.
Both were banned from keeping animals for 15 years (expires January 2028).