Northland woman charged after breaching order to own animals

A Northland woman has been charged with breaching an order that prevented her from owning or exercising authority over animals for a period of 10 years, after numerous animals including cats, kittens and birds, were found in distressing conditions.

The woman, who has a history with SPCA, appeared in Auckland District Court on Friday and was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment, with leave to apply for home detention.

In October 2021, the woman presented a severely unwell cat, Boy, to a veterinary clinic using a false name. She claimed she had found the cat, as a stray on her property and noticed he was ‘becoming unwell.’

Upon examination, the vet found Boy was extremely emaciated, dehydrated and had sunken eyes. Boy would have been showing these symptoms well before he was brought into the vet clinic.

The vet recommended further treatment or euthanasia. The woman elected further treatment and the vet recommended that Boy should be admitted into the clinic and started on fluids and antibiotic treatment. The woman said she would take him home for the night and re-book for the following day.

When she brought Boy back in, a second veterinarian made the same diagnosis, and due to Boy’s poor prognosis, recommended euthanasia.

The defendant declined and Boy was admitted to the clinic, but his condition didn’t improve. Radiographs revealed a large mass on Boy’s chest which was most likely affecting his ability to breathe. Again, euthanasia was recommended but the woman declined.

The vet told the defendant it was extremely unlikely Boy would survive due to his diagnosis, but the woman wanted a second opinion from a specialist vet, and an appointment was made.

The woman collected Boy, then cancelled the appointment. Boy died later that same night. The referring veterinarian said that Boy’s death would have been slow and distressing. Also in October 2021, the woman and her partner presented a hen called ‘Sweetie’ to the same veterinary clinic, again using an alias. Sweetie had a significant wound that was estimated to be several days old and was unable to bear weight on her left leg which was swollen and bruised.

Despite treatment and a scheduled recheck, the woman failed to attend and instead took Sweetie to a different clinic for treatment and then failed to attend a follow up visit there also. In November 2021, the woman and her partner again returned to the vet clinic, using the same alias, with a cat and three four-week-old kittens, showing signs of cat flu. One kitten was gasping for air and gravely unwell. The vet recommended euthanasia, but the woman refused. The kitten died later that day.

Following reports of animal welfare concerns, SPCA Inspectors executed a search warrant at the woman’s address later that month. They found 200-300 roosters, hens and chicks. Many were roaming free, but others were found in fabric crates and small transport cages.

Animals were also found inside the dwelling, including two roosters in the bathroom with an inch of accumulated faeces on most surfaces.

Inspectors also found a rooster and hen contained in a crate wrapped in a tarpaulin beside a tree, and a wild juvenile magpie contained in a budgie cage.

The rooster was extremely thin and exhibited symptoms of severe neurological injury or disease. The hen was also in thin body condition and appeared to have a broken leg. Both animals required euthanasia.

The juvenile magpie was also in very poor condition and had a lesion along the length of its keel bone, which caused the bone to become exposed. There was also extensive feather damage, likely caused by its containment in a small wire cage. Due to its poor prognosis and to prevent any further suffering, the bird was euthanised.

SPCA CEO Todd Westwood said the scale of the situation and the suffering experienced by the animals was deeply concerning.

“This was a clear breach of court order. What Inspectors saw, reflects patterns commonly associated with animal hoarding, where large numbers of animals accumulate in conditions that quickly become unmanageable. Tragically, this means that animals suffer, and in some cases die, despite clear veterinary advice.

“SPCA takes breaches of court orders seriously and it’s devastating that some of these animals suffered up until their last breath.”