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A dog owner from Drefach Felindre has been given a suspended prison sentence and a lifetime ban on keeping animals after one of his two dogs was found dead from starvation and the other was emaciated.
Ricky James Kenneth Harrison, 42, of Parc Puw, Drefach, Llandysul, was sentenced at Aberystwyth Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 9 September. He had already admitted two Animal Welfare Act offences of causing unnecessary suffering to Charlie, a three-year-old male bull breed dog, and Suki, a 12-year-old female bull breed dog, by failing to investigate and deal with their weight loss and poor body condition.
“She’s gone”
The dogs were discovered on 15 November 2025 when RSPCA Inspector Jemima Hanks-Martin returned to the house for a second day running. Seals she had placed on the front door the day before were untouched and the side gate was still blocked, so she pushed wet dog food through the letterbox and went back to her van for water.
She said: “I knocked at the door again, there was no reply, I could only hear the one dog behind the door. I wasn’t able to see through the door due to the draft excluder and the dog jumping up against the letterbox inside.
“As I had concerns that no one had attended for at least 24 hours I pushed some wet dog food through the letterbox. I returned to my van to get some water to put through and when I returned to the property the dog had ripped the inside of the letterbox off of the door.
“This enabled me to see into the property. I observed what looked to be a dark coloured Staffordshire bull terrier type dog which appeared very underweight, its ribs, hips and spine were all visible. I poured the water through the letterbox and the dog was licking and eating the food and water behind the door.
“The environment inside the property appeared dirty and cluttered. I could only see one dog.”
A second tin of food went through the letterbox in an attempt to draw the other dog to the door, but none appeared. When Harrison arrived he confirmed both dogs were inside and said he had “not seen the dogs for a week but that friend was meant to be attending”.
He brought Charlie out first, in what the inspector described as an “emaciated condition”, then went back in for Suki.
Inspector Hanks-Martin said: “He returned to the property to retrieve the second dog, he came back out shortly after crying and shaking his head, he said ‘she’s gone’ and told me the dog had passed away.
“Mr Harrison came out with a deceased black and white, female, Staffordshire Bull Terrier dog named Suki, which Mr Harrison confirmed to be 12 years old.
“She appeared to be in an emaciated condition with her bones prominently showing.”
The vet’s findings
Both dogs were scored one out of nine for body condition, where four or five is normal. Blood tests on Charlie showed slightly raised urea, a possible sign of dehydration, and low calcium, but were otherwise unremarkable. The vet estimated Suki had been dead for around 24 to 48 hours and noted a small mass at the base of her tail and signs of bloody diarrhoea, with nothing else on examination pointing to a cause of death beyond her condition.
A post-mortem settled the question. The vet said: “Referring to the findings in the report I believe that this supports the mechanism of suffering for Suki as starvation and confirms this to be the cause of death.
“The report notes the presence of Wischnewsky spots, which are usually seen in animals in a very poor state of nutrition and are also associated with stress and hypothermia (this could be either environmentally or in cases such as this because the body is so run down it cannot maintain body temperature).
“Given the condition in which the dogs were found, I do not believe the suffering was short lived. The post-mortem on Suki confirms no continuous feeding for at least 48 to 57 hours due to a complete absence of gastrointestinal content.
“The presence of non-edible material shows Suki was physically able to eat and had an appetite, but no nutritious food was available.
“While Charlie was hospitalised with us he proved to have a good appetite also. Crucially, neither the post-mortem of Suki nor the clinical exam of Charlie showed any gross evidence of an underlying condition that could explain their poor condition. Given the findings I estimate a minimum length of suffering for Charlie and Suki to be three weeks.”
Earlier warnings
This was not the RSPCA’s first visit. Inspector Hanks-Martin had been to the same address in July 2025 after a separate report of the dogs being left alone. On that occasion she said: “I witnessed the dogs over the fence, a brindle bullbreed dog and a black Staffordshire Bull Terrier type dog, both in the garden area of the property, they appeared to be alert, responsive and in an ideal body condition at this time.” She left information and taped the door, and Harrison rang the charity the same day to confirm the dogs were his.
On 14 November 2025 she was back following another report of unattended dogs. Nobody answered, a dog was pushing against the letterbox from inside, and the blinds were drawn. She said: “I checked the wooden side gate to the right hand side of the property but this was blocked from behind with a fallen fence panel and other belongings. I know from previous attendance that the dogs have had access to the rear garden, but I could not see them outside on this occasion. I could only hear the one dog behind the front door.”
Because the RSPCA has no power of entry, she sealed the door, posted welfare advice and asked the owner to get in touch. When she reached Harrison by phone he “advised me a friend was going once a day to feed the dogs.” She told him she would return the next day to check someone had been.
Sentencing
Harrison was handed a one-year prison sentence suspended for two years and was disqualified from keeping all animals for life. He was also given a 24-month community order including 26 sessions of the Building Better Choices Programme, 25 rehabilitation activity requirement days and a DIDAS intervention, and must pay a £187 surcharge and £400 costs.
In mitigation the court heard he had mental health issues at the time and accepted the prosecution’s case.
Charlie’s recovery
Charlie was hospitalised and later released on a feeding plan to rebuild his weight. He made a full recovery and was rehomed by RSPCA Llys Nini Branch in February.
Inspector Hanks-Martin said: “It is heartbreaking to imagine what Suki and Charlie may have gone through. Although it was too late for Suki, thankfully Charlie recovered fully and has been happily rehomed. All animals deserve to be treated with kindness and should have their needs met. Anyone who is struggling should seek help.”
