‘House of horrors’ smelled of pet poo and urine
Woman banned from keeping animals
JONATHAN GEDDES
A Rutherglen woman has been fined and banned from keeping an animal “house of horrors” that led to the death of two pets.
Greenhill Court woman Mia Connor pled guilty at Hamilton Sheriff Court last week to causing unnecessary suffering by failing to provide for the animals in her care, with the conditions described as “horrific” by the SSPCA, who stated that she deprived the animals of “the most basic requirements” of life.
The 20-year-old received a five-year ban from keeping pets as well as a £600 fine.
However, in a foul-mouthed Facebook rant, Connor later denied the charges, claiming the animals had died because of “old age”.
Scottish SPCA inspector Jack Marshall said that they found several animals in poor bodily condition.
He described the living conditions within the house as “horrific” with an “overpowering smell of faeces and urine”.
Mr Marshall said: “This is a case of animal neglect which led to unnecessary suffering and stress to the multiple animals in Connor’s care, sadly resulting in the death of a bearded dragon and a gecko.
“The animals involved were a tabby and white cat called Nemo, a white cat named MJ, a tan and white collie dog called Luka and a presa-canario cross called Hulk.
“All of these animals were incredibly underweight, especially Luka.
“Upon entering the property, there was an overpowering smell of faeces and urine and the whole house appeared to be strewn with rubbish.
“As we entered each room, they were covered in varying levels of rubbish and each room had faeces in it, several excessively.
“While searching the rest of the rooms, I discovered two vivariums with what appeared to be two deceased bearded dragons and a deceased gecko inside.
“There was no light, heat source or water in either vivarium.
“When trying to remove the reptiles, there was slight movement from one of the bearded dragons, Cheech, who was immediately taken for veterinary attention. He was found to have hypothermia and severe dehydration.”
The report states that the other animals in the home were found to be badly underweight.
Mr Marshall added: “Hulk was contained in a bedroom upstairs and when I entered, he was desperate to get out of the room. He was also in a very lean body condition.
“This room had an overwhelming stench of excrement and urine.
“The animals were transported immediately to the vet and upon examination all were found to be emaciated and dehydrated. Both dogs were given a body score of 2/5.
“Hulk had a very marked and generalised skin disease which appeared to have had very little treatment.
“Luka’s coat was in very poor condition and smelled strongly of urine.
“Both cats had evidence of flea infestation.
“Veterinary examination found this to be marked neglect over an extended period of time, for all of the animals, comprising deprivation of the most basic requirements for life, namely food and water. The timescale involved can’t be given precisely but would be expected to be over several weeks.
“Failing to provide for these animals clearly resulted in an unacceptable degree of unnecessary suffering and stress to all the animals involved.”
A friend of Connor – who lived in East Kilbride at the time of the offence – shared a Facebook post from the 20-year-old in which she denied responsibilty, saying that the animals had died from old age and that the pictures were not of her house.
The SSPCA then re-iterated that the images had been taken in Connor’s former East Kilbride home.