Warning: This story contains details that some may find distressing.
The SPCA had prosecuted an Auckland woman who left her German Shepherd suffering in pain and unable to move for so long it had to be euthanised.
The woman has been charged with ill-treatment of an animal causing it to suffer unreasonable pain and distress.
She was sentenced at North Shore District Court to 150 hours of community work and disqualified from owning dogs for the next five years.
She's also been ordered to pay the SPCA reparations of $1500, with an additional $500 legal fee.
SPCA Inspectors were called to the woman's property in October 2020 where they first found the female German Shepherd lying on two pieces of carpet on a concrete floor.
She was unable to stand and covered in her own urine and faecal matter.
The dog's ears were wet and painful to the touch.
The Inspector immediately took her for urgent veterinary treatment where it was established that she couldn't use her hind legs, had lost control of her bowel movements, and had blood-stained urine.
Both ear canals were heavily inflamed, which indicated a longer-term disease.
The dog was in so much pain that "euthanasia was the only solution to end her suffering", the SPCA said.
The owner said her dog had become "unstable" near the end of 2018 and lost the ability to walk early 2019.
The dog spent her time "lying there" in the corner of the office.
While she had taken the dog to a vet two years earlier to get surgery for ear issues, but problems persisted.
The woman was quoted over $3000 for treatment which she did not choose to get.
An autopsy carried out on the dog suggested that the loss of hind quarter mobility, anal and bladder tone were likely caused by "a degenerative chronic condition which has a very slow onset over a period of months to years".
The ear disease would have caused severe pain and suffering for the dog over weeks and months that the pathologist said would have been obvious to anyone.
SPCA Chief Executive Todd Westwood said there is no excuse for failing to seek treatment for a sick animal.
"Pets are like family to most New Zealanders and it's unthinkable that someone would leave their dog in such a poor state for such a long period of time when they were clearly in considerable pain," said Westwood.
"It’s heartbreaking to think of what this animal suffered for months on end – even years – while her owner failed her."
He also highlighted that cases like this are distressing for inspectors and vet staff.
The SPCA said this case highlighted that not everyone is equipped to be a pet owner.
"Animals should be companions only when a person has the knowledge, ability, and means to provide them with a good life – where they experience positive welfare and their physical, health and behavioural needs are met."
