A puppy farming gang who made £500,000 whereas promoting sick and dying dogs have been jailed.
Wally Beaney, Louise Smith and Maria Smith, all of Beechwood Gardens in Meopham, all pleaded responsible to conspiracy to commit fraud and animal welfare offences.
Charlotte Byron, of Longfield Road in Meopham, pleaded responsible to conspiracy to commit fraud whereas Debbie Lampard, of High View in Vigo, admitted promoting puppies and not using a licence.
‘Horrible conditions’
The RSPCA launched an investigation after quite a few consumers contacted them saying their puppies died inside days of arriving at their new home.
As a results of these experiences, police executed a warrant at two addresses on Beechwood Gardens and one on Longfield Road and located dogs which had been stored in “dark and smelly” situations.
RSPCA inspector Vikki Dawe stated: “These dogs were all being kept in horrible conditions with very poor care which did not remotely reflect the expectations of buyers who saw the adverts placed for them.”
The dogs were kept in poor conditions (Image: RSPCA)Thirty dogs were removed from one property on Beechwood Gardens in Meopham, including three which needed urgent veterinary attention.
At another house on the same road police found five dogs inside wooden sheds – a shih tzu and a bichon frise, a cavalier King Charles spaniel and two Yorkshire terrier.
These dogs had matted fur, skin and dental diseases. A vet’s opinion was that all of these dogs had been suffering.
Other adult dogs at the property also had matted fur and were covered in their own filth.
One of these was heavily pregnant and also had mild conjunctivitis and some dental disease.
‘Puppies died after four days’
The RSPCA said their investigation revealed that Beaney had been purchasing large quantities of puppies of various breeds.
Messages on his phone showed that he travelled to Wales to collect puppies, with one message saying: “Bought 20 last week, sold about four, I’m sweating. I got cockapoo westies and some other crosses, been slow this week… could do with going back into a good four month lockdown.”
Inspector Dawe stated: “The defendants conspired together to acquire and sell puppies through advertising them in such a way as to entice the potential purchaser into coming to see the puppy, where they inevitably want to purchase it regardless of any warning bells.
“They advertised the puppies under different aliases and as a ‘private’ seller, making it appear as if the puppy had been bred from a family pet and not from somewhere unknown or farmed.
“The puppies were then sold from the defendants’ home addresses and buyers were told that they had been bred from the family pet and were being sold from family homes.”
The dogs had been stored in poor situations (Image: RSPCA)Three Golden Retriever puppies bought type Byron’s handle in July 2021 died inside 4 days of being bought.
One of the puppies was collected by his new proprietor at noon on 17 July 2021 – and died at 4.45pm after being “quiet yet restless” and exhibiting indicators of dehydration.
One would-be purchaser gave a witness assertion confirming she had visited the puppies on July 14, 2021, with a view to purchasing one.
However, she obtained a message simply days later saying that the puppy she hoped to buy had died from suspected parvo virus.
The message was despatched on July 17, 2021, the identical day after two of the opposite puppies – who later died – had been collected by their new house owners.
Puppies rescued from the defendants (Image: RSPCA)A vet who examined the case stated in a press release: “This suggests that the seller knew a litter mate was sick at the time of their sale.
“Yet the other puppy purchasers were not notified, either at purchase that a litter mate was unwell or that a litter mate became unwell.
“It is my opinion that the seller failed to protect the three pups discussed in this report by not sharing with the new owners that he had detected signs of disease in another litter mate.
“These pups were likely to suffer as the longer the interval between acquiring the disease and seeking veterinary intervention, the greater the morbidity or risk of mortality becomes.
“By informing the purchasers as soon as a litter mate became ill, not only could there have been a different outcome for these pups had they received rapid veterinary attention, but also their suffering could have been reduced.”
The vet added that the take a look at outcomes from the puppies urged that the litter had been contaminated with the identical bug: “The fact that three of the puppies from the same litter all died in such a short time frame, with one puppy confirmed to have had parvo virus, is highly suggestive this was the cause of death in all the pups.”
Four and a half years in jail
Beaney, 39, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in jail and was banned from retaining dogs for 10 years.
Louise Smith, 63, and Maria Smith, 35, had been every jailed for 2 years and 4 months and banned from retaining pets for 5 years.
Charlotte Byron, 36, was sentenced to 2 years and three months in custody.
Debbie Lampard, 63, was given an 18 month situation discharge.
Following the sentencing, Inspector Dawe stated: “This was a long and complex investigation and we are grateful to everyone who cooperated.
“A particular thanks must go to Kent Police Rural Task Force for their assistance working alongside the RSPCA investigating animal cruelty.
“Puppy farming has upsetting consequences for the puppy’s owners and the puppies themselves.
“We’d always encourage anyone thinking of getting a puppy to adopt rather than buy, and to do lots of research first to ensure they source a dog responsibly.”
All dogs eliminated throughout the search warrants had been signed to RSPCA care and have since been rehomed.
Sergeant Darren Walshaw, of Kent Police’s Rural Task Force, stated: “Those convicted reaped considerable financial benefit by repeatedly breeding dogs, all the while failing to provide the animals and their puppies with appropriate medical care, such as worming medication and inoculations.
They demonstrated cruelty and neglectful behaviour that ultimately led to numerous animals losing their lives unnecessarily.
“A robust combination of custodial sentences and bans means the offenders will be unable to inflict any more harm on animals.”
