CANINE CHAMBER OF HORRORS: MAN AVOIDS JAIL AFTER FIVE-WEEK PET NEGLECT
RSPCA inspectors unlocked a `'canine chamber of horrors" when they opened a shed door, a court heard yesterday.Geoffrey Abel, 22, of Slaithwaite, had locked his two pet lurchers in a garden shed for five weeks with just one bowl of food and water between them, Halifax Magistrates heard.
One of the dogs, an adult male lurcher, died, and the other, a tan male lurcher called Tony, was rescued by the RSPCA and has now been rehomed.
Andrew Davidson, prosecuting on behalf of the RSPCA, said that on September 5 last year, RSPCA inspector Nicky Foster arrived at the defendant's father's home in Dodgeholme Gardens, Mixenden, to be greeted by a depressing sight.
She described a rancid smell emanating from the shed.
Jessica Abel, the defendant's sister, attempted to open the shed door but did so only after a struggle.
Jessica walked in and then walked away with her hand over her mouth.
"Foster looked inside the shed which could be described as containing a `canine chamber of horrors,'" said Mr Davidson.
One dog was in an advanced state of decomposition and surrounded by swarms of flies.
The other dog, which was barely alive and in a pitiable condition, survived thanks to a rehabilitation programme.
Abel, who now lives in Slaithwaite, was interviewed and told police he had shut both dogs in the shed five to six weeks prior to them being discovered.
He said he had been scared to go home to his father following a row.
At an earlier hearing, he pleaded guilty to three offences - two relating to causing unnecessary suffering to the dog which survived and one to abandoning an animal and causing it unnecessary suffering.
In mitigation, Mark Baxendale, said the defendant had been interviewed by experts who concluded that he was a "man of limited intelligence who was susceptible to bullying." He said he had no previous record for cruelty to animals and this had not been "a deliberate act of wickedness." He added, "He left his father's house and was genuinely fearful of returning to the area because of bullying from local residents." Able was sentenced to three months in prison suspended for 12 months for each of the offences to run concurrently.
He was also ordered to submit to a 12-month supervision requirement by the Probation Service and undertake 80 hours of unpaid work.
Costs of £250 are to be deducted from his benefits.
He was disqualified for 10 years from having custody of any animal.
