Christine Hogan, 41, from Greater Manchester, was prosecuted for failing to get her sick dog veterinarian treatment despite being warned her pet could develop sepsis
A woman has been banned from owning pets after her dog’s final days ended with “suffering and death” because she ignored advice from a vet.
Christine Hogan, 41, from Heywood, was warned to get her pet, Tiny, some treatment after a vet found a cancerous growth. Despite being given advice, she let her dog suffer in pain for up to six months.
Tiny, a female Dogue de Bordeaux, appeared to look emaciated and was left to endure an “infection and rotting flesh”, without any treatment. According to the vet report, Tiny was initially given a two-week supply of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medicine.
However, Hogan failed to turn up to the follow-up appointment and ignored calls from the veterinary practice despite being warned that Tiny’s condition could be cancerous. The cruel owner was also told that her dog could suffer from sepsis and internal damage without treatment.
Hogan has been banned from keeping animals for five years. The RSPCA prosecuted Hogan after being shown the open wound and rotting flash on Tiny’s body at a pets’ crematorium in Manchester. The 41-year-old pleaded guilty at Manchester Magistrates’ Court to causing unnecessary suffering, by failing to keep up veterinary treatment for her pet, reports Manchester Evening News.
RSPCA Inspector Ryan King said he attended the crematorium on 26 January last year. He said he saw “a large area that was missing fur and appeared to be an open wound”. Inspector King added in his statement: “I could see that the dog appeared to be underweight, the ribs and spine were easily visible.”
He went to Hogan’s home and she told him Tiny had cancer. He advised her that offences may have been committed and that he would need to conduct a voluntary interview with her. However, over the next four months, Hogan repeatedly claimed she was unable to go ahead with the interview, citing a variety of reasons, and the officer had to take forward proceedings without one.
The report to magistrates said: “It is likely she will have felt weakness and debilitation having a severe lack of energy. This will have been uncomfortable and severely impacted her everyday life, ability to ambulate, to obtain food or water and play.“ The vet concluded that Hogan’s failure to seek veterinary treatment and follow the advice she had been given had “ultimately” led to Tiny’s death. Her pain would have lasted from July 2023 to January 2024. It was “chronic in nature and would have increased considerably towards the last few weeks”, the report added.
Speaking after sentencing, RSPCA Inspector King said: “This is a very sad case. Tiny would have been in terrible pain over a long period of time. No animal deserves that. Her suffering emphasizes once again how important it is for pet-owners to seek veterinary advice as soon as their pet shows signs of illness, and to follow the advice that is given. Tiny’s case also shows how important it is for kind and responsible members of the public to report any evidence of animal suffering to the RSPCA.”
The RSPCA offers advice to owners struggling to care for their pets because of rising prices at its cost of living hub.