A WOMAN from Hopwood is one of two people to have been prosecuted after an emaciated Bull Mastiff dog named Blue was handed in to the Dog Warden.
Mrs Jaspal Boparia, aged 47, of Wasthill Lane and her ex-husband Mr Ranjit Boparia, aged 46, of Shoesmith Close, Barwell, Leicester, were sentenced on September 19 at Redditch Magistrates after the case was brought to light by Worcestershire Regulatory Services Dog Warden service.
Mrs Boparia pleaded guilty to an offence under Section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act for failing to provide a suitable diet which resulted in the dog being caused unnecessary suffering.
She admitted to reporting the dog as a stray, even though he was in her care, after she noticed he had stopped eating and she could not afford to take him to the vet.
Mrs Boparia was given a 12-month community order with 80 hours unpaid work and was also ordered to pay a total of £1,310. The court decided Mrs Boparia would not be given a banning order.
Mr Boparia, the owner of the dog which he had handed over to his ex-wife in the Autumn of 2016, knew the dog was not eating but failed to take steps to prevent the dog’s condition deteriorating.
Mr Boparia was already subject to a banning order following an offence at the end of last year which prevented him from owning a dog for a period of five years. Having pleaded guilty to an offence of failing to take steps to prevent the dog from suffering Mr Boparia was fined £333 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £33 and £2,447 in costs.
Worcester Regulatory Services (WRS), which brought the prosecution, was first alerted to the situation of Blue on January 11 after receiving a call from Mrs Boparia stating she had taken in a stray dog. The dog was collected by the Dog Warden who described him as being emaciated, skin and bone, with no muscle tone and in all round very poor condition.
The dog received immediate treatment by the vet but over the following the next few days the dog’s temperament deteriorated and he became a risk to staff so the decision was made that he be put to sleep.
A WRS Spokesperson said: “Cruelty of any kind towards a defenceless animal should not be tolerated and our Dog Warden Service frequently run campaigns to highlight the plights of animals across the county.
“It is hoped that the more people are exposed to the cases the department faces, the more they will look out for cases of cruelty so we can step in and end any unnecessary suffering before it is too late.”
