A woman from Leicestershire has been banned from keeping any animal for 15 years after not getting her emaciated lurcher vet care, despite the dog suffering from painful untreated skin lesions covering much of her body.
Lorien Taylor of Oronsay Close, Hinckley was also sentenced to a 12 month community order including 10 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days and 200 hours of unpaid work. She must pay costs of £350 and a victim surcharge of £114, after pleading guilty to two offences under the Animal Welfare Act.
The sentencing took place at Coventry Magistrates court on 10 June.
Picture credit: RSPCA
On October 2024, the RSPCA visited Taylor’s home to carry out an animal welfare check, following concerns about a dog who reportedly had fleas and had become unable to walk. Taylor let the two officers into the property and led them upstairs onto the landing, towards a “rancid” smell. An emaciated cream coloured lurcher wearing a coat was lying immobile on the landing, with visible sores on her face. The officers thought she was dead.
RSPCA Inspector Karl Marston said: “I cannot recall being so shocked at the condition of an animal throughout my career.
“As we walked up the stairs [at Taylor’s home], I noticed a strong, rancid smell coming from the landing. Once at the top of the stairs, I saw a coat, which I quickly realised was wrapped around a cream coloured lurcher type dog.
“The dog – Sapphire – had sores on her face and when we pulled back the coat and revealed the condition of the dog, I initially assumed she was dead – she was lifeless, with extensive sores across her body.
“It was not until she blinked that it was apparent she was still alive. Her ribs, spine, hips and leg bones were prominent. There was a pile of red/brown faeces by her rear end.”
Inspector Marston explained to Taylor that due to the shocking condition of Sapphire, a four year old female lurcher, she needed emergency veterinary attention. Taylor said she wanted to sign Sapphire into the care of the RSPCA, and agreed for the officers to take her.
Sapphire was transported to an RSPCA Animal Hospital, where vets found extensive scabbing and sores around Sapphire’s abdomen, and live fleas in her coat. Despite the team’s extensive efforts to stabilise her, later that day, Sapphire sadly passed away.
A veterinary post mortem concluded that Sapphire had suffered due to malnutrition and her untreated skin disease. They reported that the emaciated dog had a very low body condition of 1/9, and was half the weight she should have been. To reach a body condition score this low, the dog would have had a restricted calorie intake for a minimum of three weeks.
Fifty-five multifocal skin lesions were found on Sapphire’s body, showing varying degrees of erosion, crusting, and alopecia. A particularly large, crusted, wound on the abdominal area measured 24 x 27 cm (10.63 x 10.63 inches).
The post-mortem advised the underlying cause of the skin lesions was metastatic calcification, a rare condition in dogs that causes calcium deposits to form in the skin, muscles, tendons and soft tissues, possibly caused by ingestion of vitamin D supplements. It found that ‘the cause of death is not clear, but is most certainly related to severe neglect and failure to seek appropriate veterinary care, as evidenced by the emaciation and skin lesions observed clinically.’
The vet said that Sapphire would have been suffering for at least three weeks from the pain. The inflammation, ulceration and itchiness caused by the skin disease meant the dog would have been extremely uncomfortable for a prolonged period of time.
The vet concluded that the emaciation and “bone marrow fat atrophy” most likely occurred over several weeks.
It was believed Sapphire’s suffering could have reasonably been avoided by providing an adequate and appropriate diet and by seeking veterinary advice and treatment promptly.
In mitigation, the defence cited personal difficulties. Taylor said she had tried to rehome the dog but she accepted she should have tried harder.
Inspector Karl Marston added: “It is a pet owner’s legal responsibility to properly look after any animal in their care. This poor dog died because of her owner Taylor’s neglect and failure to seek veterinary treatment for Sapphire, when it was clear she so desperately needed it.”
