Copyright birminghammail
Animal abusers should face tougher punishments and higher fines at court for beating their pets, fresh calls say. One such abuser Joshua Evans, was caught on camera hitting, throwing and aggressively handling his two Cane Corso-type dogs in shocking doorbell footage. The 19-year-old, from Slade Close, West Bromwich , was banned from keeping animals for ten years after he was prosecuted by the RSPCA. Read more: Solihull road closures live as drivers warned of 'major disruption' after crash Alongside the ten-year animal ban, which he can not appeal for seven years, Evans was also given a two-year community order with 200 hours of unpaid work and 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days. He was ordered to pay £400 and a victim surcharge of £114 at Birmingham Magistrates Court on October 21. However, many slammed the sentence, suggesting it does not go far enough to punish those who injure animals. Alex Wilson said: "Another suspended sentence with low fine and a ban that isn't checked - and what card does he play - mental health the only health issue he has. He is a cruel violent nasty piece of work and should be punished for his abhorrent crime." Mannie Raiyat added: "I have no words. I just pray these dogs get a forever home where they are loved." Addy Adam commented: " RSPCA need more powers and the courts should also be much tougher on people who abuse animals." Ross Lawson wrote: "Courts should be really tough on animal abuse." Melissa McCoy said: "Animal cruelty charges need to step up." In mitigation, Evans said he was remorseful and sorry for his behaviour. He was said to have been "drinking at the time and facing mental health challenges". A vet who examined the dogs said in a report to the court: “Due to the level of caution exhibited by both dogs when approaching their head, it indicates a level of mental distress with prior experiences around their head. "It can be considered both animals had previously suffered or were not protected from pain and injury. “As witnessed in the videos the dogs are not protected from pain and would have suffered through the mechanism of pain with the action of hitting, striking with a foot, and hitting onto a gate." The dogs also would have suffered as they were held up by their collar, "compressing their jugular veins and the trachea." The report added: "This pressure on the trachea would have caused an aspect of respiratory compromise as the dog would have had difficulty breathing appropriately for the duration of time being held up by their collar. “The duration of suffering would have been acute to the time of striking and raising by the collar but could extend up to 24 hours, potentially longer, depending on the level of associated inflammation. "The dog was struck four times in one of the clips to the same location on the face therefore increasing the acute pain responses fourfold." The dogs were seen "cowering" and displaying "submissive behaviour", highlighting their suffering through "fear and distress", it continued. “Both dogs were deemed to be quite slender, with scope to increase their body weight by at least 4kg, therefore can be considered to have not had their needs met due to a failure to provide a suitable diet. "I would have expected a reasonable owner to have fed an appropriate diet, or sought veterinary advice if there was continued weight loss despite feeding an appropriate diet. “Bella had bilateral prolapsed third eyelid glands, which are irritating and cause problems with the tear film of the eyes further irritating the eyes. Therefore the dog would not have been protected from discomfort or disease. I would have expected a reasonable owner to have sought veterinary treatment for this condition.”
