CONVICTED (2024) | Sophia Flynn, born c. 1999, of Sherbourne Avenue, Chester CH4 7QU – waited almost a week to seek treatment for a kitten’s broken leg.
Flynn attempted to bandage her pet cat’s leg herself, but the bandage acted as a tourniquet and cut off the blood supply, resulting in necrosis.
The male tabby, named Auburn, had to have the back leg amputated after suffering a broken tibia.
Flynn said the injury had been caused by Auburn becoming trapped under a pile of boxes and other items at her previous home in City Road, Chester.
In addition to bandaging the leg, Flynn gave Auburn an anti-inflammatory drug called Meloxicam that had been prescribed to her for another cat.
According to the RSPCA, the drug could easily have overdosed the kitten, who weighed just 1.7kg at the time, and could also have caused vomiting, diarrhoea and blood and renal failure.
Magistrates were told that the RSPCA became involved in the case after Flynn took the kitten to a vet on Monday, October 9, 2023.
Flynn showed the vet a photograph of a pile of boxes and items she said had fallen on Auburn two days before, leaving him trapped underneath for approximately 45 to 60 minutes.
By the time Flynn sought treatment Auburn had a high temperature and the vet had to extract a large volume of puss from his leg. Such was the severity of his injury that the limb could not be saved and it was later amputated.
There were numerous concerns over how Auburn came to be injured, the length of time it had taken Flynn to get him to a vet, her treatment of his leg and the giving of pain relief that had not been prescribed to him.
In his written evidence to the court, another vet who reviewed the kitten’s x-rays and clinical notes, said the findings pointed to a fracture of between four to five days old, which would be consistent with the injury having occurred on either October 5 or 6.
The vet said: “Although the administration of pain relief would have reduced some of the pain experienced by Auburn, the treatment was inadequate to treat a hind limb fracture.
“In addition, either due to the administration of the bandage or the inadequate level of pain relief, Auburn began chewing at his leg leading to extensive skin damage and a well-established bacterial infection which was unlikely to have occurred if appropriate veterinary advice and treatment had been sought promptly.
“In my opinion Auburn was caused to suffer as a consequence of Sophia Flynn failing to seek prompt veterinary advice at the time of the injury. Suffering will have been experienced by this animal via a mechanism of pain for a period of at least 48 hours, possibly longer.”
Flynn said she could not afford Auburn’s operation, which was paid for by the RSPCA.
In mitigation the court was told she had mental health issues as well as autism, ADHD and a borderline personality disorder.
Auburn, who Flynn refused to sign over, has been cared for by the RSPCA’s Wirral & Chester Branch. The charity said he has recovered well and will be rehomed after a confiscation order was also imposed by the court.
Another cat owned by Flynn, who gave birth to four kittens in the New Year, is also being looked after by the charity.
Sentencing | Disqualified from keeping animals for five years (expires July 2029).
