A PET-owner from Bebington has been banned from keeping animals for life after the neglect of her dog which left it with maggot-infested wounds and days from starving to death.

The animal was was put to sleep to end its suffering.

Marilyn Williams, 51, admitted at Wirral Magistrates Court to causing unnecessary suffering to 11-year-old Rottweiler Tia.

The dog was found by RSPCA inspectors emaciated and unable to move on the bathroom floor at Williams' home in Plane Tree Road.

Williams was given a 12-week prison sentence suspended for two years and ordered to pay £1,075 costs.

Wirral Globe:

The court then banned her for life from keeping animals.

Tia had a chronic skin condition, a large sore from a pressure wound and live maggots on her hind quarters.

A post mortem found a tumour on her oesophagus which meant she was unable to swallow food.

When interviewed by the RSPCA she said: “I know. I feel guilty about it”.

Chris Murphy, prosecuting, said: “She said she had to feed the dog by hand as it wouldn’t eat or drink. She had noticed the animal had lost weight.

“She said she noticed the dog had lost use of her back legs. She had noticed that the flies were paying an interest in the animal, but she had not noticed the maggots.

“The dog’s condition was so serious by the time a vet was called that she would have starved to death within 24 to 48 hours.”

Wirral Globe:

Magistrates were told that Williams, a mother-of-six, had run out of money after she was unable to attend assessment meetings for sickness benefit.

Gerry Pachter, defending said: “You have in front of you a very traumatised lady who is full of remorse. It’s one of those ‘If only she could turn back the clock’ type situations.

“Sadly as much as she loved and adored her dog, Tia’s health wasn’t in the forefront of her mind with all of her personal issues.

“She had had always had a dog and loved dogs. She also had a pet cat, which was in perfect condition.

“It would be cruel and wrong to reach the conclusion that she was not fit to look after the cat."

Wirral RSPCA Inspector Anthony Joynes later told the Globe: “The list of issues discovered during the post mortem described a catalogue of prolonged neglect.

“Particularly harrowing for me was the tumour that spanned across the entirety of the oesophagus which meant that Tia couldn’t swallow food and was essentially slowly starving to death.

“She had obviously been in a collapsed state for some considerable time with one of the pressure sores found to have the shoulder blade bone actually protruding through the skin.

“She was also found to have live maggots on her body. This dog, in short, was suffering unimaginably and that must have been obvious to Miss Williams.

“I am grateful the magistrates have passed down a lifetime disqualification on all animals owing to the seriousness of the case.

“It saddens me we were not alerted to the condition of Tia before it was too late or at a time when at least her suffering could have been ended at a much earlier stage.”