Adelaide woman convicted, fined after starving dog to death

A woman neglected her dogs so badly that a starving husky was forced to eat the deceased body of another dog out of desperation.

A woman cruelly let two young Siberian huskies starve before one ate the emaciated corpse of the other.

An RSPCA inspector found a ten-month-old male dog deceased and its body partially eaten and an emaciated ten-month-old female dog when they inspected the woman’s house in September 2019.

The RSPCA believes the surviving dog consumed the deceased dog’s body out of desperation, after a veterinary report found the dogs would have been receiving inadequate nutrition for at least two weeks prior.

During a court hearing, the 31-year-old Adelaide woman responsible for the animals’ care was ordered to pay a $1141 fine and placed on a two-year good behaviour bond over their treatment.

The defendant told the inspector she had gone away for a few days without arranging any care for the dogs in her absence.

The woman stated she had put out a bowl of dog food as well as a container of water, but the inspector was unable to locate any food bowls or water containers in the yard.

The RSPCA suspects the female dog ate a second deceased dog out of desperation. Picture: Barb Seidel / RSPCA

Magistrate Teresa Anderson described the condition of the dogs as “shocking”, and said the defendant had only had the dogs in her care for a short time before she neglected them.

She said the defendant “shouldn’t be in charge of animals” and imposed a prohibition order forbidding the defendant from owning any animals until further order.

The defendant was convicted and sentenced to a three month prison term, suspended due to her having no prior history of ill-treating animals, and her personal circumstances.

Within three weeks in the care of RSPCA South Australia, the female, Stormy, gained 76 per cent of her initial body weight and eventually gained full health, before finding a home in November 2019.

The ten-month-old dog, Stormy, managed to be rehomed after regaining her health. Picture: RSPCA

RSPCA South Australia Chief Inspector Andrea Lewis described the case as an example of people taking on dogs with no acknowledgment of the responsibilities that go with pet ownership.

“It is totally unacceptable to go away, and make no provision for the care of your animals,” Ms Lewis said.

“This is an extreme case of neglect, with tragic consequences, and begs the question of why this person chose to have dogs in the first place, especially dogs of this breed with their high care needs in terms of grooming, exercise and diet.

“We urge people to not acquire any animal unless they fully understand and accept what is required to properly care for them, both physically and mentally.”