Auckland man found guilty in animal abuse case after dog found in skeletal condition

An Auckland man has today been found guilty of recklessly ill-treating an animal after his pet dog was found in skeletal condition almost starved to death having been fed on instant noodles.

Left tied up without access to water and little food, German Shepard crossbreed Nasa was too weak to walk or even stand up when discovered by an SPCA inspector at a Mangere property in October 2013.

An SPCA Auckland vet found Nasa had been under-fed and had been left in severe pain for months suffering from extreme malnourishment, open sores, dermatitis and a heavy burden of fleas.

Nasa’s owner Daryl Forse was charged with ill-treatment of an animal and sentenced today in the Manukau District Court. The judge ordered Mr Forse to forfeit any animals he owns and was banned from owning animals for 10 years. Mr Forse, unemployed, was also ordered to complete 200 hours of community service and to pay legal and court costs of $1,130.

The Court found Nasa would have been in severe pain for months prior to her being euthanised. Mr Forse confirmed he had been unable to feed the dog well for some time and over the two months prior to the dog’s removal by the SPCA had at times only fed the dog instant noodles.

Nasa was euthanised on humane grounds due to severity of her emaciation, the likelihood of serious ongoing disease including organ damage and the pain and distress she was suffering.

After hearing evidence from animal experts, the Manukau District Court noted that any reasonable dog owner would have done more to care for Nasa, and it would have been obvious even to an untrained person to see the dog needed prompt veterinary attention.

“This is a shocking case of an irresponsible owner neglecting their dog and leaving them to suffer. Not only did they not provide food, shelter or water, they failed to take their dog to the vet for basic medical care,” said SPCA Auckland CEO Andrea Midgen.

“The dog owner should have acted upon Nasa’s severely emaciated and starved condition, but instead Nasa suffered a slow and painful decline into poor health that eventually led to her unavoidable euthanisation.

“Nasa was close to death and suffering from serious dental disease, open sores and flea infestation when she was found by the SPCA inspector. She was so malnourished the vet found Nasa had no fat reserves under the skin or around her major organs, something that only occurs in the final stages of starvation. These conditions would have caused chronic pain that no animal should have to experience.

“Dogs simply cannot survive on human food or scraps. They must be fed quality dog food designed to give them the nutrition they need.

“I would like to pay tribute to the dedicated inspector who worked towards achieving justice for Nasa, from the first inspection, right through to gathering the evidence to help achieve this disqualification. This case epitomises the painstaking work required by the inspectors of the SPCA in ensuring justice prevails for those animals requiring our assistance.”

ENDS

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