A female has actually been sentenced to 12 weeks in jail for “causing unnecessary suffering” to her family pet dog – who later on needed to be put down.
A court heard that Rebecca Dowbenko herself had a variety of health concerns, however she “didn’t believe” in taking medication for these conditions, and had “extended this feeling” to her animals.
When she appeared at Bradford and Keighley Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, Dowbenko, 52, of Fairfax Road, Cullingworth, confessed stopping working to get the much-needed veterinary treatment for among her dogs, a Newfoundland dog called Lily.
The case was given the courts by the RSPCA, and an agent of the charity said by the time they had actually been warned of Lily’s condition, her facial swelling had actually got so bad that the dog was efficiently blind.
As well as the facial swelling, the court was informed that Lily had actually been struggling with a “dreadful” skin illness, rib swelling and lung injury, persistent arthritis and spondylosis – none of which had actually been efficiently dealt with by Dowbenko.
Some of the injuries followed blunt injury – magistrates heard.
The court was informed that Lily was very first provided to the PDSA with a skin illness, referred to as “dreadful” in 2017.
Staff informed Dowbenko Lily would require to be seen once again in follow up visits, however she was not reclaimed to the veterinarians for these check outs.
The dog was required to the PDSA on additional events, consisting of in late 2021, however Dowbenko never ever acted on ideas from the veterinarians at the charity.
Mr Brown, prosecuting on behalf of the RSPCA, said the charity was gotten in touch with by the PDSA due to their issues about Lily’s health.
He said: “The dog was clearly suffering and was in obvious pain, suspected to be caused by blunt trauma.
“The animal became blind as the facial swelling grew.
“The suffering could have been prevented by presenting the dog for veterinary care earlier.
“The dog was allowed to suffer by the failure to provide veterinary treatment over a prolonged period.
“It was not clear when the injuries had been occasioned – there were signs of blunt force trauma within a minimum of six weeks, but could have developed over a number of months.
“By the time Lily was presented to the RSPCA the only humane option was euthanasia.”
Philip Cockroft, protecting Dowbenko, said: “The is a lady 53 years of age who has no previous convictions to her name.
“The allegation is that this lady failed to obtain the necessary veterinary care for an animal she accepts she was responsible for.
“She finds it very hard to accept this, she would say she is a very caring person, and the animal that had to be destroyed is one she had from a puppy until the age of nine.
“Human beings benefit from the NHS, but for someone on benefits a single visit to the vets eats up a huge amount of benefits.
“She herself suffers from arthritis and severe anxiety. She doesn’t believe in taking medicine to help her, and it would seem to some extend that she extends her feelings in this respect to animals in her care – not because she doesn’t love these animals, but because she does things in her own way.”
Magistrates retired to think about a report about Dowbenko composed by the Probation Service.
When they returned, Chair of the bench Vicky Reynolds said: “We heard evidence that in 2017, 2018 and 2021 you visited the PDSA, and they found her to be suffering with a dreadful, long standing itchy skin complaint, and they advised you to get this treated.
“You failed to do this on all these occasions. The probation report says you are in denial that you caused any suffering to Lily, and you don’t seem to have shown any remorse.
“Lily was left in pain and suffering for a long period of time. There was totally negligent treatment at an early stage.”
The case was so major, Magistrates had actually accepted sentence Dowbenko to 12 weeks custody.
Half of this time would be served in jail and the rest in the neighborhood.
They purchased the seizure of her other animals, and she was disqualified from owning any animal for ten years.