Dog owner receives 25-year ban
Winchester City Council’s Animal Welfare Team has successfully tracked down and obtained evidence to prosecute a dog owner for animal cruelty and neglect.
The dog, a Belgian Malinois, was found at a depot in Micheldever and was in a very emaciated condition. The dog was found to have a choke chain that had been on him since he was a puppy. The chain had become too small to fit so had started to embed itself in the dog’s neck.
The 18-month-old dog, christened Ben, was immediately taken to the vet to have the chain removed. After a month of recuperation Ben has made a full recovery.
On 9 December 2015 the owner of Ben, Mr Caleb Loveridge from Micheldever, was found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. He was sentenced to an 18-week suspended prison sentence with 250 hours community service. He faces court fines of £4,000 and has a 25-year ban for owning or participating in the care of any dogs.
Cllr Frank Pearson, Portfolio Holder for Environment, Health and Wellbeing, said:
The Animal Welfare Team at Winchester City Council takes responsible dog-ownership seriously. We are pleased with this result and will not tolerate cruelty of this nature.
Fortunately cases like this are rare – we have had four successful prosecutions since 2013.