A dog warden and an inspector with the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals found the carcass of a half-eaten terrier dog in the garden of a woman convicted of cruelty to six dogs.
Dona Sfar, St Bronagh's, Lisdoo, Dundalk, had pleaded not guilty at Dundalk District Court yesterday. She defended herself. Convicting her, Judge Flann Brennan said he was satisfied Sfar believed she was not guilty of the offences but he had no doubt that she was.
She was convicted of cruelly ill-treating and neglecting six dogs by failing to provide suitable food and drink for them and by not maintaining their kennel and enclosure in a suitable condition.
The summons was brought under the Protection of Animals and Control of Dogs Act and related to an offence at Oaklawns, Dundalk, on December 28th last.
The court heard the defendant owned the house in Oaklawns but was not living there at the time. A neighbour had climbed on to a tree beside the wall to her back garden and saw one dead dog lying on a wooden structure in the garden. He said another dog was eating the dead animal. Three other dogs were running around the garden. He contacted the Louth Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Mr John O'Connor, a next-door neighbour, also gave evidence of seeing the dead dog being eaten. Dogs could also be heard barking in the garage.
Louth ISPCA inspector Mr Paul Mellon got a number of calls about the dogs that day. He told the court he found the dead dog on top of a makeshift kennel. With the dog warden, he entered the premises and removed the animal. There were several other dogs in the yard in the garage and he could see no sign of food or water being available.
He handed photographs taken of what he found to Judge Flann Brennan. He told Garda Insp. Gerry Smith he wanted the dogs removed because the house was vacant and they could be a danger to the public.
Veterinary surgeon Mr David MacGuinness said he was met by an appalling vista when the garage door was opened. There was dog excrement, dirt, rubbish, four dogs running around and no apparent place for food or water. The animals could not get out and were in very poor condition in an environment that was a danger not only to the dogs' health but also to anyone else.
Garda Peter Cooney said the dogs in the garden were panicking. He did not go into it because he was afraid to do so. In her statement to him, Sfar had said she rescued dogs and worked in opposition to the Louth ISPCA. She said the dog that had died had been buried but a storm had blown away the grave.
In the witness box the defendant said the dogs were her surrogate children and she would not desert them. When she arrived at Oaklawns she had found her home violated and the dogs whisked away. She was not neglectful. She wanted her pets returned.
Judge Brennan fined Sfar, who is a Customs officer, £300, and disqualified her from owning any dog for five years. He also set appeal terms. Sfar said she would appeal.