LUTON COUPLE SENTENCED FOR STARVING DOG TO DEATH
A heartless couple who permitted their dog to starve to death have received a ban from keeping pets for 10 years after a veterinarian was horrified by the animal's condition and contacted the RSPCA.Petrica Danila, 29, along with Paulina Goetzen, 32, admitted to failing to adequately nourish their American Bulldog, Grizzly, who tragically weighed only 15kg when he died.
A postmortem examination revealed that Grizzly died from asphyxiation after choking on food at their home in Luton, Bedfordshire.
When they took his emaciated body to the vet, staff were alarmed at his condition, observing the absence of fat tissue, muscle wasting, and serous atrophy of the bone marrow, which are indicative of prolonged starvation.
Inspector Susan Haywood stated, "When I saw Grizzly's body, it was immediately apparent that he was emaciated as all his bones and in particular his ribs were sticking out from his body.
This poor dog would have suffered and as the vet report concluded, this could have been for a prolonged period of time.
Pets rely on us to ensure their needs are met and there is no excuse to allow your pet to get into this sorry state." The vet assessed that Grizzly had been suffering for at least two weeks leading up to his death, experiencing weakness, fatigue, exercise intolerance, and discomfort.
Goetzen and Danila apologized, explaining they lacked the funds to take Grizzly to the vet earlier, and acknowledged they should have acted sooner.
During sentencing, it was revealed that Goetzen has three children and suffers from multiple sclerosis.
Both were sentenced to 16 weeks in custody, suspended for 12 months.
Danila was additionally ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work, whereas no such requirement was set for Goetzen due to her medical issues.
The court also banned the couple from owning any animals for a decade and ordered them to pay approximately £1,696.31 each, payable at £50 per month, in restitution.
