Non prosecution case (2023) | Harry Nathaniel Dunn, born January 1995, of 35 Cotton Lane, Halton Lodge Runcorn WA7 5NB – starved a 12-month-old puppy to within days of death.

In 2022, pet rescue Warrington Animal Welfare [WAW] were called by a concerned landlord to report a puppy he had seen in a property he was renting out to professional dog walker and part-time musician Harry Dunn.

WAW visited the property and found three dogs: two adult lurchers of normal weight and a third called Otis, who was skeletal.

Dunn told WAW that Otis had been to the vets but this turned out to be a lie. The rescue later discovered that Dunn had been visited by the RSPCA two weeks earlier and issued with an improvement notice in relation to Otis’s condition.

WAW took Otis to their vet for immediate assessment, during which it was discovered he had open pressure sores on his legs caused by being kept in a dog crate soaked with own urine. The puppy weighed just 4.5kgs, and was days away from dying.

Dunn initially refused to sign over Otis to WAW but was eventually persuaded that it was in the puppy’s best interests to relinquish him.

Further enquiries by WAW determined that Dunn had fed his other two dogs while leaving Otis to slowly starve in his own filth.

While it initially seemed that the RSPCA would prosecute Dunn based on the evidence obtained by WAW, ultimately the charity let him off with a caution.

WAW took to their Facebook page to express their disappointment and anger with the outcome.

Otis remains with WAW and is making good progress in the rescue’s care and with the proper veterinary treatment.

Source: Warrington Animal Welfare Facebook post 19 June 2023.