Starving pitbulls were kept in stinking room
Reporter: HELEN KORN
Date published: 10 May 2011
£2,000 fine and five-year ban from keeping animals
A DAD-of-FIVE who allowed four animals to be kept in a room full of faeces has been banned from owning animals for five years and fined £2,000.
Takeaway boss Mohammed Younis (35), of Cottage Gardens, Oldham, pleaded guilty to three counts of animal cruelty and one of possessing an illegal dog — a female American pitbull terrier called Splits.
Prosecutor Mark Harper told Oldham magistrates how an RSPCA inspector and police had visited a house being rented by Younis in Bolton Street, Glodwick, in July last year.
Two malnutritioned tan and white American pitbull puppies, which were only four weeks old, were discovered with their skeletal mother in a locked room full of excrement.
Officers reported that the room stank, there was nowhere they could stand in the room without treading in the mess and that the sofa was damp with urine.
They also discovered a condensation-ridden tank which contained dirty water and an empty bowl — which a lethargic snake was curled up underneath. There was a heating facility for the reptile, but it was not turned on.
Mr Harper said: “The female’s skeleton was prominent, there were hollows in between her ribs and an obvious lack of muscle. She stank and her coat was unkempt and she had large teats as though she had had puppies.”
The prosecution said that when asked who the dogs belonged to, Younis said: “That’s for me to know and you to find out.”
As the American pitbull dogs fall under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, the RSPCA is not allowed to re-home the dogs and they were destroyed. The corn snake was rehomed.
Vets bills and inspector’s fees mounted to £6,769.
Martin Hayes, defending, said Younis was not the owner of the animals but accepted the charges.
At the time Younis had been having marital difficulties and was spending some time at the house in Bolton Street.
He said: “He was approached by a young man who is the owner of these animals. This person was unable to keep the animals where he lived and asked if he could rent a room for the dog. Mr Younis agreed and took money off the person.
“It is believed the house had been in that condition for a fortnight, so it was relatively short-term.”
Steven Burston, chairman of the magistrates, told Younis: “We have taken into account that you showed no remorse in court and our sentence reflects this. You have shown no regard to the animals or for the suffering that was experienced.”
Younis was also ordered to complete a 12-month community order with 100 hours’ of unpaid work.
Cathy Hyde, RSPCA chief inspector for Greater Manchester, said: “I hope the sentence sends a clear message that what Mr Younis did was unacceptable and that the ban on keeping animals will be enough to ensure nothing like this happens again.
“The dogs were living in awful conditions with no access to food or water. All three were very thin with their bones protruding.”
