A couple from Penyrheol have been jailed after admitting they caused unnecessary suffering to two dogs.
Marie Howells, 37, and Darrell Richards, 42, pleaded guilty to three charges at Caerphilly Magistrates’ Court and were jailed for 18 weeks and banned from keeping animals for life.
An RSPCA inspector found both dogs very underweight – with one less than half the weight it should have been.
RSPCA Inspector Christine McNeil, who visited the couple at their Penyrheol home, said: “This is a fair result, reflecting the appalling cruelty and neglect displayed by the defendants.”
Inspector McNeil visited the house in Penyrheol on November 14 last year.
She found a bull mastiff type dog named Sally kept in a garden shed and another called Sox kept in the house.
A veterinary examination concluded both dogs were very underweight and that Sally was severely emaciated.
Sally also had early kidney failure and an infected liver and was half the weight she was supposed to be. She was so weak she couldn’t stand on her own and had to be carrried.
Her condition was so poor that she could not support herself and had to be carried.
Sally was signed over to the RSPCA and Sox was given to a neighbour.
The charity said although Sally’s condition improved she was later put down.
A spokesperson added: “A few weeks ago she bit a member of staff and this incident meant that we could not have placed her in a new home knowing that this might be repeated.
“As a consequence, Sally unfortunately had to be put to sleep.”