A dog was left to die alone in a dirty cage while her owner went on holiday for two weeks.
Jade Roberts, 26, appeared in court and pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to the dog, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier named Daisy. The RSPCA began investigating after receiving a call with a concern for the dog's welfare in August 2021.
Inspector Leanne Cragg attended a home on Botanic Place, Liverpool, where she found the brindle and white coloured dog was already dead. Daisy had been alive on July 31, 2021, when Roberts went on holiday for 14 days, as reported by the Liverpool ECHO.
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Inspector Leanne Cragg said: “On entering the property I was hit by an overpowering stench of decomposing flesh. There were a lot of live flies flying about the property.
"I could see a dead, decomposing brindle and white Staffordshire Bull Terrier type dog at one end of a large cage in the front room. The base of the cage was covered in a layer of old faeces. At the front of the cage there was a turquoise plastic bowl upside down, a metal bowl of dried food and another metal bowl which was empty.
“The property was messy and dirty with clothes and rubbish strewn all over the furniture and floor. I removed Daisy from the cage and I could see that her body was very badly decomposed with her eyes were missing, there were holes straight through her body and there were a lot of maggots of varying sizes.”
Following sentencing, Inspector Cragg added: “It was a very sad sight and one which could easily have been avoided."
Roberts has been banned from owning all animals for a decade. In addition, she was sentenced to 12 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months, 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days, mental health treatment requirement for six months and a victim surcharge of £128 at Northampton Magistrates' Court on Thursday, April 21. She was also ordered to pay £500 in costs.
Roberts had previously pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering by leaving Daisy unattended without sufficient food and water, resulting in her death. In mitigation, Roberts claimed she was unaware Daisy was not being cared for as she had arranged for an undisclosed friend to look after Daisy while she was away and expressed genuine remorse for Daisy’s death. Roberts was also dealing with personal issues at the time.
