Mayfield woman banned from dog ownership for seven years

A magistrate says a dog named Smoochie, which suffered “appalling” neglect, had a happy ending after being removed from its owner.

MAYFIELD woman Skye Christina Harris has been banned from owning a dog for seven-years and ordered to pay a $1500 fine for “appalling” cruelty to a dog called Smoochie, which was in her care.

Harris, 23, failed to appear at Launceston Magistrates Court for her hearing over the matter last week.

She again failed to appear before the court on Tuesday and Magistrate Brown found her guilty of animal cruelty and proceeded to sentence her in her absence.

The court heard that RSPCA officers found the dog malnourished and living in “appalling” conditions with “large amounts of faeces and urine” on November 17, 2016.

It was confined, restrained and unable to provide for itself and Harris failed to provide for the animal.

Magistrate Brown said the dog must have been “literally crying out for nutrition and medical attention, which it did not get”.

He said the dog suffered “significant pain and distress”, which showed a cavalier disregard of the animal’s condition over a period of weeks and a “callousness almost beyond belief”.

The dog was formally surrendered to the RSPCA and Magistrate Brown said before and after photos showed the dog “recovered beautifully from its suffering” once it was “fed and watered as it should be”.

He called the progress a happy ending.

He said a vet gave evidence that the dog must have been malnourished over a considerable amount of time.

Magistrate Brown dismissed a further charge relating to the management of the animal.

A lawyer representing the RSPCA asked that Harris be banned from owning a dog for 10 years, except for her current dog Roxy, which was reportedly in fine condition.

Magistrate Brown said 10 years was a long time given Harris was in her 20s.

He made the order for seven years, convicted and fined Harris $1500 and ordered that she pay $2867.06 to the RSPCA for costs incurred in looking after the dogs.