CONVICTED (2022) | Linda Jones, born c. 1972, of Gwelfor, Llanelli SA14 9NT – allowed her dog’s fur to become so matted it stopped the blood supply on one of her legs.
Terrier Trixie’s condition was so bad that part of her skin had been “cheese wired” by bands of hair and matting which had cut into the flesh. This then cut off the blood supply to Trixie’s lower leg and caused the skin on her foot to turn black..
Her coat was also so severely matted in places that she could not even see properly.
The neglect was only discovered when her owner, Linda Jones, took her to the PDSA in Swansea in January 2022, where vets made the difficult decision to put her to sleep on welfare grounds.
The PDSA reported the matter to the RSPCA and Inspector Keith Hogben visited Jones’s home on January 11, 2022, to question her about Trixie’s poor condition.
Jones denied the allegation that Trixie was neglected and said there was nothing wrong with the dog. She claimed that her paw had been bad for just two weeks and that she intended to have the dog’s coat dealt with once her foot had been treated and healed.
The PDSA vet who examined Trixie said the damage had taken place over a longer period, however. They noted she was non-weight bearing on her left front leg, which was foul smelling, and that she was anxious and in visible pain.
Evidence read out in court from the vet said: “I was able to see the skin had been ‘cheese wired’ by the bands of hair and matting and had cut into the flesh revealing her flexor tendons and underlying fascia.
“It was also possible to see bone when the limb was flexed.
“The hair I was able to remove around her pads and toes revealed black, cold skin that was becoming necrotic. I believe this is what was causing the smell… Unfortunately this had cut off the vasculature to the distal limb which had died off.
“Mrs Jones advised that the duration of lameness was about a week, suggesting Trixie had been painful enough to not use the limb for that time as a minimum.
“In my opinion the changes to the limb had likely happened over a longer period of probably at least three weeks.
“This is not taking into account the discomfort Trixie would have been in with a heavily matted coat, which was likely of at least three months duration.”
In the face of damning evidence against herm Jones changed her plea to guilty in relation to causing “unnecessary suffering” to Trixie between 5 October 2021 and 5 January 5 2022.
Following the conclusion of the case, RSPCA Inspector Hogben said: “Sadly the basic needs of this little dog had not been met. She hadn’t been groomed regularly which resulted in a severely matted coat and a leg injury that couldn’t be treated in time to save Trixie’s life.”
Sentencing | eight-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months; 10 days of rehabilitation; £428 in costs and victim surcharge. Banned from keeping any animals for 10 years.
There is absolutely no need for this.
If you cannot do the Grooming yourself or haven’t got the time.
There Are Multiple Dog Groomers In Llanelli.
This could have easily been sorted if taken to Groomers earlier, as they could have Clipped all the Coat.
Absolutely Heart Breaking.