Northumberland couple banned from keeping animals after 'incredibly thin' German Shepherd dogs

A couple from Northumberland have been banned from keeping animals after "incredibly thin" German Shepherd dogs were found at their home.Margaret Stanners, 48, and Kieron Cruise, 37, pleaded guilty to two offences of causing unnecessary suffering to the two canines.Stanners and Cruise, both of Benridge Park, in Blyth, appeared at North Tyneside Magistrates’ Court on 15 August 2023.

The pair also received an eight-week prison sentence, which was suspended for 18 months.

RSPCA inspector Rachael Hurst had been called to a property on 27 February 2023 where Stanners told her that the dogs were “getting better” after having initially lost weight.But in a statement, the inspector said that the dogs had looked “incredibly thin."

“I could see their spine, hip bones and ribs, while across their backs they had hardly any fur.

"Their skin was flaky and there was a malodorous smell,” inspector Hurst said in a statement to the court.

Stanners gave the inspector permission to take Buddy, who is around 10 years old, and Bella, aged eight, to see the vets.Buddy weighed just 21.4kg, and had a flea infestation, an eye infection and mild anaemia.Bella, who weighed 18.3kg, had hair loss on her back and skin abrasions where she had been scratching due to the fleas.The vet said in an expert report that both dogs had lost weight because of inflammatory bowel disease, but their weight would not have plummeted so low had they been fed an adequate diet.

Both dogs quickly gained weight in the care of the RSPCA. In two months, Buddy put on 7.7kg and Bella 7kg.Inspector Hurst said: “They have both put on weight and are making progress in our care at Felledge Animal Centre, although they are not quite yet ready to be rehomed.”

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