SIMON AGNEW FROM HULL SENTENCED FOR ANIMAL CRUELTY INVOLVING DOBERMAN

In 2019, Simon P Agnew, born on October 5, 1972, of Sykes Street, Hull HU2 8AZ, was convicted for neglecting his elderly Doberman. The dog, named Dobba, was found severely underweight, weighing only 23.8 kilograms, after being surrendered to the Hull RSPCA branch just before Christmas.

An investigation traced the cruelty back to Agnew, who initially claimed he had rehomed Dobba and provided various false explanations to inspectors. RSPCA Inspector Jilly Dickinson explained, “Dobba was microchipped so we went straight round to Mr Agnew’s home and interviewed him the following week. He gave us different accounts and claimed he had rehomed Dobba three months earlier.” She continued, “He said he’d asked a friend to pretend to find him in the street and hand him in. He forgot that Dobba was still microchipped in his name.”

The RSPCA then appealed to the public for information and received a tip indicating that Agnew still owned Dobba. In court, Agnew pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to the dog, who has since recovered.

Inspector Dickinson described Dobba’s condition: “Dobba was incredibly skinny and had clearly been neglected over a period of time. You could see all of his ribs and his waist was so tiny I could fit my fingers around it. His head was so gaunt that the point of his skull protruded through his skin and caused a sore. He was covered in faeces and smelled terrible.”

Thanks to care, Dobba has gained nearly 7kg and is doing well. He has already been reserved by a loving family and will soon be rehomed.

Regarding the case, Agnew received a 12-month community order, including an alcohol treatment requirement. He was also ordered to pay costs and charges totaling £385 and was disqualified from keeping all animals for life.

— Yorkshire Post