Dog owners from hell banned from owning animals after neglect leaves one pet dead and another starving

UNITED KINGDOM -- A COUPLE who neglected their dogs so much one of the pets died were yesterday banned from owning animals for the rest of their lives.

And an official from a charity described the case as, “One of the worst we’ve ever seen”.

Male cross collie Gizmo – who the Scottish SPCA found was less than half the weight he should have been – didn’t survive the ordeal.

But despite being severely underweight, female cross collie Tess recovered and is now ready to be rehomed after being cared for by the Scottish SPCA.

A sheriff said that Gizmo died because John Robertson, 58, failed to take care of him.

Last night, the charity slammed Robertson and estranged wife Bernadette Ross, 35.

Inspector Louise Seddon said: “This couple shouldn’t be allowed to care for anything that depends on them.”

 

At Stirling Sheriff Court, Robertson and Ross pled guilty to animal cruelty charges.

Robertson was jailed for 15 weeks and Ross was ordered to complete 110 hours of unpaid work within nine months. Both were given a lifetime ban from owning or dealing with animals.

The court heard the couple were separated but lived under the same roof at a house in Stirling. Ross lived upstairs while Robertson stayed downstairs.

When Inspector Seddon visited the home in January, she noticed the dogs were shut in the lounge and asked to see them.

She said Tess looked thin and Gizmo was lying on the floor like “a complete bag of bones”, unable to lift his head.

The inspector said: “At first, I thought Gizmo was dead. He was completely flat on the floor and his eyes weren’t moving. He didn’t even flinch when Robertson stepped over him.”

She said there was a foul smell and Gizmo had toileted where he lay.

Robertson claimed his 13-year-old dog had cancer and his wife had taken the animal to a vet in Alloa. But when the inspector rang the vet, they had no record of Gizmo having attended.

Robertson allowed Inspector Seddon to take the dogs to a vet, who found that Gizmo was suffering from severe malnutrition and dehydration.

There was no sign of disease in his body but the vet said that, without treatment, he would have gone into shock and died within a few days.

Robertson agreed to hand Gizmo over to the Scottish SPCA but Ross refused to let go of Tess and the charity had to get a court order to keep her.

Gizmo’s health improved under the charity’s care but, weeks later, he had to be put to sleep when his condition deteriorated.

Robertson’s solicitor Ken Dalling said Gizmo had been a family pet for 10 years but because of the “strained domestic circumstances” within the home, Robertson had failed to care for him.

He added: “He shouldn’t be caring for dogs, or any animals.”

Explaining why Ross had refused to sign over Tess to the charity, her solicitor Alastair Ross said: “She has children who are cared for elsewhere. She hoped they would be returned to her in the future and the dog would be a pet for them.”

Inspector Seddon added last night: “We welcome the custodial sentence given to Robertson. It sends out a strong message that animal neglect is a serious offence.

“Thankfully, we can now find Tess a new home where she will be loved and cared for.

Inspector Seddon said the couple had since sold their horses and she has removed another dog, a cat and five birds from their property.

(Daily Record UK - Nov 7, 2014)