The directors of a South Australian animal rescue shelter who "bit off more than they could chew" when they neglected six animals have been fined more than $6,500.
South Australian Humane Animal Rescue Association (SAHARA) director Carole Louise Morris, 59, pleaded guilty to five charges relating to the neglect of a pug called Sim, a possum and three horses — Winky, Ashley and Eileen — in late 2019.
Her partner, 52-year-old Shane Anthony Jones – also a director at SAHARA — admitted one count of animal cruelty in relation to a Maltese-cross called Mike, which had to be euthanised because of his "crippling anxiety".
The six charges were negotiated down from more than 30.
On Monday the court heard that at the time the RSPCA inspected their two properties at Black Springs and Morgan in 2019, the couple had about 450 cats and dogs, as well as 130 horses, in addition to pigs, sheep and goats.
Magistrate Edward Stratton-Smith asked if the couple had "bit off more than they could chew".
Prosecutor Warwick Ambrose responded they had, given the sheer number of animals in their care across both properties.
He said many of the animals had "self-evident" injuries that would have been obvious to anyone, and possums were being kept in "very small" cages covered in faeces.
"They're obviously revolting — they're essentially kept in cat cages. Their living conditions were beyond inadequate," Mr Warwick submitted to the court.
Horses neglected
He said horse Ashley had a hoof that was 20 centimetres overgrown, was emaciated and had internal parasites, while Winky had obvious discharge coming out of her eye.
The court heard the other horse, Eileen, could not walk.
Craig Caldicott, representing Morris and Jones, told the court the couple had worked seven days a week, with the help of volunteers, to care for the animals at their charity.
"They did bite off more than they could chew, and they chewed really hard for more than 20 years," he said.
He said Morris founded SA Dog Rescue about 23 years ago and rebranded it to the South Australian Humane Animal Rescue Association in 2019.
"They've had thousands of dogs and cats through their facility," he said.
Magistrate Stratton-Smith said he accepted the couple did not intentionally harm the animals and it came out of neglect.
"This was not the most serious offending of this kind – you were not intentionally cruel, but it was ongoing and involved a number of animals," he said.
He imposed convictions on the couple, who have also been banned from sitting on the governing body of the association and being involved in decision-making.
