Beaten, tortured, discarded and starved: tragic animal victims of the throw away society
Beaten, tortured, discarded and starved: tragic animal victims of the throw-away society A black cob mare was found in Water Meadow in Rose Lane, Diss, Norfolk in November 2006. She was suffering from infected wounds to her head and face caused by an ingrown rope halter, as well as untrimmed hooves which were causing pain to her hind legs. In addition, she had a worm infestation and was thin and weak. |  |
| Clones Jones (53) of Shelfanger Road, Diss, was already banned from keeping equines for 10 years. Thetford Magistrates Court extended this ban to 15 years in October 2007 and sentenced Jones to four months imprisonment after finding him guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to the horse. Co-defendant Jason Shaw (22) of Ladbrooke Close, Diss, was ordered to serve 100 hours of community service, ordered to pay £200 costs and was banned from keeping horses for three years after pleading guilty to the same offence. In mitigation, Shaw said that he had never owned horses and was unaware that there was a problem. |  |
| RSPCA inspector Jon Knight said: "To leave animals without veterinary treatment when they are suffering and in pain is inexcusable. A severe sentence was needed in this case as the defendant had a history of not providing his animals with an adequate standard of care." Clones Jones lost an appeal against his sentence at Norwich Crown Court on 12 October 2007 |  |
 | A Taunton couple were banned from keeping horses for 10 years and given a 12-month community order after pleading guilty to charges of cruelty to animals. Appearing before the Taunton Deane Magistrates in May 2007, Christopher Hartnell (24) admitted three counts of failing to provide adequate food and care for two adult Shetland ponies and a foal, and one count of causing unnecessary suffering to the foal at an earlier hearing. |
The pair, who live in Hudson Way, Taunton, were keeping 18 horses and ponies at Blockhouse Farm, Nynehead, when they were visited by RSPCA inspectors in October 2006 after a complaint.
When the inspector tried to get into the field to look at three of the animals - a 15-year-old black mare called Poppy, her foal and a three-year-old chestnut palomino called Spicy - Francis and Hartnell became abusive and threatening.
The court heard that a vet who examined Spicy once she had been removed felt she was in such a bad condition that she would have died within 72 hours if she had not been rescued.
The foal was also very ill and died just over a month later.
The defence argued that Hartnell and Francis had struggled with their commitments and were genuinely ashamed and sorry about what had happened.
Each was given a community order for 12 months - Christopher Hartnell for 150 hours of unpaid work and Rachel Francis for 75 hours - and each ordered to pay £1,250 towards costs. Both were banned for 10 years from keeping horses.
RSPCA inspector Marie Griffiths, who took the case to court, said: "I am very pleased that this couple received a lengthy ban. They didn't seem to know or care how to look after the numerous ponies in their care and as a result animals suffered."
Taunton
Inspector Marie Griffiths
| The decaying body of a starved dog found chained by a radiator, a cat kicked to death for having muddy paws, 316 rats crammed into seven cages and a dog with a deep neck wound from a collar more than four inches smaller than its neck. This is just a tiny sample of the horrors confronted by RSPCA inspectors in 2007. But there are also some amazing tales of survival. Thanks to vigilant members of the public, the RSPCA has been alerted to some appalling situations in time to rescue animals which have survived against all the odds. These include a dog so thin its rescuers couldn't identify it, a cat left to suffer for three weeks with a broken leg, and a staffie whose owners had cut its ears off. All are now enjoying new lives in loving new homes. |  |
The RSPCA's latest figures for 2007 expose a:
34% increase in convictions for cruelty to dogs (1,197 in 2007)
15% increase in convictions for cruelty to cats (277 in 2007)
12% increase in RSPCA cruelty investigations (137,245 in 2007) and a
26% increase in banning orders1 issued by the courts (861 in 2007).
"These animals are the helpless victims of our affluent, throwaway society," says Tim Wass, Chief Officer of the RSPCA Inspectorate. "They're bought on a whim and discarded when the novelty wears off. Today's must-have item quickly turns into tomorrow's cast-off.
"Worse still," Tim continues, "some animals are violently abused because they don't meet their owners' unrealistic expectations: like the cat kicked to death for having muddy paws or the dog strangled with its lead for misbehaving."
But the year has good news, too, with the success of the new Animal Welfare Act already starting to take effect. The new Act - which came into force during 2007 - has made it possible to take action sooner than ever before in situations where there are animal welfare concerns.
The Act is already producing powerful results in its first twelve months. Where animal welfare concerns have prompted the RSPCA to give advice to an animal owner, that advice was followed and the problems resolved 92% of the time, meaning that no further action was necessary.
"Even in these early days, the benefits of the new law are clear," Tim Wass enthuses. "Without the new Act, this year's cruelty figures could have been even more horrific."
Commenting on the 2007 cruelty statistics, Tim observes, "Dogs have always borne the brunt of cruelty - from violent outbursts to extreme neglect. But that's what makes this year's horrendous 34% increase even more shocking: it's a massive increase on an already high figure."
It was hoped that last year's leap in convictions for cruelty to horses was an anomaly. But this year's figures show that the higher numbers have been maintained - they increased by 33% between 2005 and 2006 - and then increased by a further 13% to 119 in 2007.
The rise in banning orders is a big improvement on the previous year, which had actually recorded a fall. The new Animal Welfare Act obliges courts to explain their reasons if they don't impose a ban and this may have contributed to the increase. The new requirement seems to have focussed attention on preventative action which can prevent suffering and save lives.
"The main reason we take people to court is to prevent cruelty being repeated," Tim Wass explains. "And it's very reassuring to see the courts taking this seriously by issuing more and more banning orders, which prevent those convicted of cruelty from keeping animals in future."
Added on: 30/07/08.
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