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A starving dog a few days after dying was photographed looking out the window of a house where it was locked in a dirty room with no water; the owner is now prohibited from having animals for five years.
Tyson, a mixed-race mixed-race man, was trapped in an upstairs room where he starved to the point where “every bone” in his body was visible.
The room was discovered littered with feces and urine, complete with a sofa that had no cushions after RSPCA inspectors were called to a property in Lemington, Newcastle.
Mark Gallagher, 32, admitted his adult mongrel Tyson had gone from bulky to ‘hound-like’ after the poor dog was discovered.
The depressed dog was found trapped in a room with no water and surrounded by his own feces and urine.
Tyson, a mixed-race mongrel, starved to the point where ‘every bone’ in his body was visible.
Police officers forced entry to the address and took Tyson to a veterinarian where he was found to weigh 45.4 lb (20.6 kg) and was given the lowest body condition score of 1/9.
The vets found no medical reason for his drastic weight loss, which left every one of his bones visible, other than lack of food.
He was banned from keeping animals for five years on Friday and sentenced to eight months in jail, suspended for 12 months by Judge Robert Adams at Newcastle Crown Court.
Gallagher was accused of causing unnecessary suffering and failing to provide for Tyson’s needs, in contravention of the Animal Welfare Act of 2006.
The starving dog a few days after dying was photographed looking out the window of a house where he could not leave the room above.
Police officers forced their way into the address and took Tyson to a veterinarian where he was given the lowest body condition score.
The irresponsible owner was also ordered to carry out 20 days of rehab activity requirements, pay £500 costs and a £156 victim surcharge at Newcastle Crown Court.
Judge Robert Adams said: “Within a couple of days the dog would have been dead.
“The dog was indeed starving. It is believed that he would not have survived much longer.
Prosecutor Alex Bousfield told the court that Tyson was so underweight that “practically every rib” could be seen.
The court heard that RSPCA inspectors were called to an address where Tyson had been seen looking out of an upstairs window.
The vets found no medical reason for his drastic weight loss other than lack of food.
Since no one appeared to be inside, an inspector taped the door and returned the next day.
Inspector Terri-Ann Fannon visited the address again and found that the tapes were still intact, suggesting that no one had entered the door since.
Tyson could again be seen in the upstairs window and appeared to be in “extremely poor condition” and was unable to go down the stairs to the front door.
Terri-Ann called police for help, who broke in and found Tyson with a small amount of food and no water in a room covered in feces and urine.
After being seized and taken to the vets, Tyson drank 1.2 liters of water in about three minutes and ate the food he was given within seconds.
Tyson’s claws also grew too long from a lack of wear and tear from exercise.
Judge Robert Adams said: ‘In a couple of days the dog would have been dead’
In her witness statement, Terri-Ann said: “Tyson was extremely underweight with all bones visible, his head was cone shaped and sunken, his hips and spine were protruding, he had absolutely no muscle tone or fat.”
“Once at the vet, he drank insatiably and constantly wanted more.”
When interviewed, Gallagher admitted that he had not sought veterinary treatment and said that he could not afford a vet.
She admitted that she had never let Tyson out and that the last time she cleaned the seedy room where the dog was kept was about six weeks ago.
Brian Mark, the defense attorney, told the court that Gallagher has a history of mental health problems, adding: “This entire offense is entirely as a result of his mental health and the treatment of that mental health.”
The court heard that Tyson, as well as a fish and a parrot that were in the house, were transferred to the RSPCA and the dog was rehomed.
The case is one of the first RSPCA prosecutions to go up to crown court for judgment following a change in the law last year.
Tyson has thankfully been loaned out to the RSPCA and the dog has been rehomed.
Previously, the maximum sentence that a magistrate could impose for crimes against animal welfare was six months in prison. But under the new guidelines, this was increased to five years for certain crimes and magistrates decided that his powers were not sufficient in Gallagher’s case.
Hayley Firman, from the RSPCA’s prosecution department, said: “While this man was ultimately given an eight week suspended prison sentence,
“It is good to see that the courts are applying the new legislation as intended and giving the Crown Courts the opportunity to consider punishments for crimes considered to be the most serious.”