OneKind has welcomed a Sheriff’s decision to ban a man who starved and neglected his pet dog from keeping animals . OneKInd also recommend that more convicted owners should be subject to disqualification orders, and for longer periods.
The cruelty and suffering inflicted on this dog is quite staggering and extremely upsetting. As well as the physical suffering this dog would have undergone mental suffering as a result of being kept in a cupboard. While we welcome the eight year ban, in cases as severe as this we would hope to see judges impose a full life time ban on keeping animals.
At Hamilton Sheriff Court yesterday (Thursday), Matthew James Fleming from South Lanarkshire was fined £750 and banned from owning animals for eight years. The 23-year-old pled guilty to failing to provide adequate nutrition and necessary veterinary attention to his 13-year-old dog, Edge. The dog had been kept in a cupboard and was too weak to stand when found. His condition was so extreme that he had to be put to sleep by a vet.
It is extremely upsetting to see animals in such an appalling state of health. Dogs are the most loyal and loving creatures and to think that any human can return this loyalty with neglect beggars belief.
In a recently-published report into the enforcement of animal welfare in Scotland, we have highlighted the fact that courts must consider banning people convicted under certain sections of the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act, but such orders are only issued in around half of the relevant cases. In 2012, out of 109 successful Scottish SPCA cases, 55 persons received disqualification orders, including 11 life bans.