Man’s appeal against 10-year animal ban dismissed

Nation.Cymru staff

A man who failed to seek treatment for a severely underweight pregnant dog has lost his appeal against a 10-year ban on keeping animals.

Matthew Mark Andrews, of Henry Street, Neath, was sentenced at Swansea Magistrates’ Court in July after admitting an offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

He was given a 10-year disqualification from keeping animals, a 12-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months and ordered to complete 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days.

Andrews appealed against the animal ban, arguing that it was not necessary. Swansea Crown Court dismissed the appeal at a hearing on September 18 and ordered him to pay a further £750 in costs.

The original hearing was told that the PDSA received a call from Andrews after his shar-pei-type dog, Pandora, had not eaten for four or five days and had lost weight.

When she was taken to a vet on November 21 last year, she weighed 18.4kg. Previous records showed she had weighed 25kg in August 2023.

Her spine, ribs and hips were clearly visible. She was also close to full-term pregnancy, although her condition was so poor that this was not immediately apparent.

A scan showed that Pandora was carrying between seven and nine puppies. She also had a chronic yeast infection affecting her skin.

Pandora underwent emergency surgery after a section of her small intestine became twisted. She later developed another blockage.

Because of her chronic condition, the vet decided that further surgery was unlikely to save her and she was put to sleep. The puppies also died.

The vet told the court that treatment should have been sought earlier.

Dismissing the appeal, the Crown Court said: “This was gross and long-standing neglect. The defendant should not have any animals for a significant period.

“We are concerned about a high probability of neglect in the future.”

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