British woman convicted of cruelty to animals for second time

UNITED KINGDOM -- A dog owner neglected her animals for so long that they struggled to walk due to the weight of their filthy coats.

 

Pauline Kinghorn, 62, kept three shih-tzus, a German Shepherd, and 12 cats in squalid conditions in her house in Linton Colliery near Ashington, Northumberland

The dogs' coats were so overgrown and matted with food and feces that they couldn't see properly and were dragging their back legs, Bedlington Magistrates Court was told.

Pauline Kinghorn

A vet who examined shih-tzus Holly, Angus and Lacy - who are now healthy and have been re-homed - said she had never seen anything like them, and estimated that they had been neglected for at least six months.

The German Shepherd was in such poor health that it had to be put down, and 12 cats found in cages caked with excrement were removed from the property.

Kinghorn - who has a previous conviction for cruelty to cats in 2003 - admitted charges of causing unnecessary suffering to the three shih-tzus and the German Shepherd between October 2011 and April 2012.

She also admitted four charges of failing to ensure the welfare of the animals in her care.

Magistrates, who were shown a DVD and photographs of the animals and the conditions inside the house, adjourned the case for probation service reports.

Kinghorn will return for sentencing in November, when magistrates will consider a ban on her keeping animals.

Clive McKeag, prosecuting for the RSPCA, told the court it was 'a case of the most extreme neglect you are ever likely to come across', and warned  magistrates that the DVD would fill them with 'revulsion, disgust and probably anger'.

RSPCA inspectors visited Kinghorn's home in April after neighbours complained about an 'incredible odour' outside the property.

They found the animals living in 'quite disgusting' conditions, which left one inspector 'gagging' because of the stench, said Mr McKeag.

Aspecialist dog groomer removed huge amounts of matted fur from the shih-tzus, who struggled to walk due to the weight of their overgrown coats.

The groomer said the dogs' coats were in the worst condition of any he had ever seen.

Mr McKeag said: 'The condition of these animals was an absolute disgrace and they could not walk or see properly.'

He asked the court to disqualify Kinghorn, who was banned from owning cats for five years in 2003, from keeping any animals.

Paul Watson, defending, said Kinghorn lived alone and suffered from sight and anxiety problems, but wanted to be independent and was not a person who asked others for help.

Mr Watson said: 'Clearly this is something that should not have happened, and has gone on over a period of months.

'She accepts the inevitability of a ban on keeping animals.'

(Daily Mail UK - Oct 26, 2012)