A starving dog, just days away from dying from hunger and dehydration, had been photographed peering out the window of a house where he had been locked in Lemington, Newcastle, England.
Police officers arrived at the home, after seeing the photo of the starving dog looking out the window, but no one answered. RSPCA Inspector Terri-Ann Fannon taped the door, and the next day when she returned, no one had entered. She could still see the dog in the upstairs room looking down at her. She then called the police again, who broke in and found the dog with a small amount of food and no water.
According to the Daily Mail, the Labrador retriever mixed breed, named Tyson, had been neglected his entire life. His owner, Mike Gallagher, 32, admitted his dog had been deprived of food and water, and on Friday a judge banned him from keeping animals for five years and sentencing Gallagher to eight months in jail; which was suspended for 12 months.
It had been the photo a Good Samaritan had taken of Tyson looking out the window of the home where he had been locked in the upstairs filthy room, littered with feces, urine and starved to the point where “every bone” in his body was visible that likely saved the dog’s life.
When police seized the dog, they rushed him to a nearby veterinarian where his body score was rated a “1” out of a possible “9”. When offered food and water, Tyson drank for at least three minutes straight and ate the small portion of food offered to him.
RSPCA inspectors stated there had been no medical reason why the dog had been so emaciated.
Tyson was extremely underweight with all bones visible, his head was cone shaped and sunken, is hips and spine were protruding, he had absolutely no muscle tone or fat. Once at the vet he drank insatiably and constantly wanted more
Terri_Anne RSPCA
During the trial, Gallagher admitted he had never let the dog out of the house, and he had not cleaned the room where the dog was held prisoner in at least six weeks.
Fortunately, new laws have raised penalties for animal cruelty. Under new guidelines, penalties have increased from six months in prison to five years for certain crimes. Gallagher’s defense attorney told the court his client has a history of mental problems, and the horrible treatment of Tyson had been the result of his illness.
Tyson and a parrot that had been at the home and later seized also by the RSPCA, have since been rehomed and are doing fine.
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