Woman jailed after strangling pet dog with lead

A woman has been jailed for four months after strangling her pet dog with its lead and wrapping duct tape round her muzzle.

Hayley Cowan had only just been handed back Staffordshire Bull Terrier Beau after the RSPCA removed her following reports she had been kicked.

The 22-year-old promised the dog would not be harmed but a few hours later Beau was dead.

Cowan then buried the body in her garden and told the RSPCA the dog had run off.

But a court heard witnesses confronted her that night after noticing the freshly dug area.

RSPCA Inspector Vicki McDonald said: "They confronted her the next day but were told it was just toys that had been buried. The next night they went back and discovered the body, and called us."

A post-mortem found Beau died of strangulation by means of the duct tape and tightened collar.

Bruising to her limbs and internal bruising to her neck and lungs suggested she had been held down.

Inspector McDonald added: "It's difficult to imagine what this poor dog went through at the hands of someone she trusted.

"It was a heartbreaking case to investigate and mainly made possible by witnesses coming forward."

Cowan, of Lynton Road, Tyldesley in Wigan, was also fined £500 and banned from keeping animals for life.