CONVICTED (2023) | hoarders/breeders Beverly Gilson, born 28 May 1959, and John Howard, born 15 November 1951, previously of Eastville, Bristol and now of Trallwyn, Abernant, Carmarthen SA33 5RL – kept 48 severely neglected dogs in a “house of horrors”.
RSPCA inspector Keith Hogben described the scene of shocking neglect that confronted him during his first visit to the remote property shared by Beverly Gilson and John Howard. He said: “I could hear a large amount of dogs inside and when entering the kitchen area found there to be many dogs kept in cages, some stacked on top of each other, other dogs were running loose in the house.
“The conditions in the kitchen area were in a poor state with many of the dogs having matted coats and no bedding in their cages, some dogs had water provided by rabbit bottles attached to the cages.
“The smell of dog faeces and urine was overpowering, the room was dark with very little natural light coming in and the dogs were barking constantly.
“I noticed one dog in particular being kept in a small rodent cage and this dog was continually spinning in the cage, there was little room for anything else in this cage.
“Many of the dogs in these cages had faeces present that had not been cleaned out and there was faeces trodden into the floor of the kitchen area.”
“In the living room several more dogs were found in cages in similar conditions as found in the kitchen. Here there was no carpet and a “strong smell of dog faeces and urine.”
In three of the upstairs rooms he found dogs to be present – two of these rooms were three bearded collie type dogs. In the third bedroom there were five dogs in cages in similar conditions to downstairs.
Inspector Hogben added that there were several dogs loose in this bedroom with “obvious matted coats”.
“The smell of urine and faeces in this third bedroom was one of the worst I have smelt in my near-24 years with the RSPCA,” he said.
“There was no window open and when I opened the door to this bedroom I was taken aback by the smell, it made me cough and retch.”
He explained to Gilson and Howard that the conditions were unacceptable and many of the dogs were in a suffering state and a vet needed to examine the dogs.
Two days later Inspector Hogben returned with a vet and RSPCA deputy chief inspector Gemma Cooper.
Inspector Hogben said: “Many of the dogs from upstairs on my last visit were now downstairs and there were still a large amount of dogs in cages. The smell of urine, faeces was again overpowering even though Beverly Gilson had opened windows.”
The vet informed him that the animals needed to be removed. Throughout that day each dog was brought out of the property and examined by the vet.
“Many of these dogs were in a poor condition with heavily matted coats, overgrown nails and some had eye issues, there was also an unpleasant smell coming from the dogs,” said inspector Hogben.
In total 39 dogs were signed over to the RSPCA for rehoming – with Hope Rescue and The Dogs Trust attending to assist with 21 of the dogs.
Gilson and Howard decided they wanted to keep nine dogs and the cat – but would voluntarily allow the RSPCA to remove them from the property as they did not want police attendance.
Sadly the cat – who was very poorly – was put to sleep on welfare grounds and two dogs were also put to sleep on veterinary advice – with permission sought from the owner.
In a written statement from DCI Cooper she said when she entered the property “the foul smell hit me and as I got even further into the property, my eyes started to water.
She added: “I have been an RSPCA Inspector for 12 years and I can’t remember the last time a property made my eyes water like this.
“The house was extremely chaotic with dogs barking and running everywhere. Near to the front door was a heavily matted, white, toy poodle type dog standing on a table that Beverly Gilson was in the middle of grooming. I could see fleas crawling all over her and she was trembling. Her skin looked pink and she appeared extremely uncomfortable.
“There were approximately 18 dogs in the first room, some free roaming and some in cages. There were puppy pads placed on the floor and inside the crates; urine was seen on many of the pads as well as on the floor of the house.
“Dog faeces, some that had been trod in by other dogs, was also seen on the floor throughout the property.
“The dogs in the crates had no access to a comfortable resting area or a separate toileting area and shockingly, they had access to water through a rabbit drinking bottle.
“In the kitchen area there were approximately 30 dogs, again some free roaming and many in crates. Many of the dogs were very nervous and others jumped up at the crate, craving attention. I noted one dog was spinning in her crate.”
DCI Cooper added that many of the dogs “were so badly matted” she had trouble identifying their breed.
“One dog was clearly in pain, screaming as the veterinary surgeon examined him and the screaming went right through me. It was awful to listen to,” she said.
The dogs ranged from poodles, Japanese chins, rough collies, Pekingese, chihuahuas, shih tzus and a lot of crosses between these breeds, with one RSPCA rescuer having trouble identifying the breeds due to their matted coats.
The dogs that were signed over into RSPCA care and other charities have now been happily rehomed.
Sentencing | 15-week custodial suspended for nine months; 15 days of rehabilitation; 50 hours of unpaid work; £400 each; FIVE-year ban on keeping all animals (expires December 2028).
