On appeal, the Circuit Court lessened the harshness of the penalties given to a couple who ran a puppy farm out of an abandoned piggery on their west Cork home, reports RTE.
At the Cork Circuit Court in Bandon, William Sheehy, 57, and Eleanor Sheehy, 50, of Grange More, Timoleague, Co Cork, appeared before Judge Helen Boyle.
In connection with the substandard conditions in which they housed the dogs on their property, the Sheehys entered a guilty plea to six charges of animal maltreatment under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 in the District Court, according to Tim O’Connor, who was representing the Department for Agriculture, Food, and the Marine.
Judge Monica Leech sentenced William and Eleanor Sheehy to five months in jail with a two-year suspension last month, reports RTE.
In addition to being compelled to pay the €12,822.48 in costs paid by the ISPCA in rehoming the first 14 canines, they were each fined €1,000 for each of the six convictions, given three months to pay the amount.
The court mandated that they turn over the remaining animals “forthwith” and that prompt action be taken to protect their welfare, reports RTE.
Additionally, they were mandated to cover the expenses of finding new homes for the remaining canines on their property, which were “to be quantified.”
William and Eleanor Sheehy were also permanently barred by the court from possessing or breeding dogs.Judge Monica Leech sentenced William and Eleanor Sheehy to five months in jail with a two-year suspension last month.
Caroline Faherty, an ISPCA inspector, said that she visited the Sheehys’ property on March 21, 2023, to examine the kennels after receiving a public complaint, reports RTE.
According to her, the kennels immediately struck her as “filthy and stinking” with a “overpowering smell of ammonia.”
50 adult dogs and 22 pups of different kinds, including cocker spaniels, poodles, bichons, cavaliers, Bernese mountain dogs, Newfoundlands, collies, Jack Russells, and crossbreeds, she reported to the court.
When Ms. Faherty first visited the kennels, she reported that “there was faeces everywhere,” some of which were mouldy, suggesting that they had been there for a while, reports RTE.
Many of the dogs, according to Ms. Faherty, had matted fur, runny eyes, itching ears, and others had symptoms of alopecia and conjunctivas.
Inspector Caroline Faherty of the ISPCA Along with behavioural problems like spinning on the spot, several of the animals had discharges coming from their ears, which was a sign that they had not been socialised appropriately, reports RTE.
According to Ms. Faherty, she sent a notification to the Sheehys, telling them that she will be back in two days to do an additional inspection.
She reappeared on March 23, 2023, escorted by the local dog warden, the county dog warden, and the chief veterinary inspector, reports RTE.
Since that was all that could be accommodated at the moment, it was decided to remove the 14 dogs that were in the poorest condition on that particular day. The Sheehys gave up the animals after agreeing.
According to Ms. Faherty, after receiving veterinary care, the 14 canines were later placed in new homes, reports RTE.
She informed the court that a surrendered female Newfoundland dog “had a coat like cement” and was so malnourished that she was “skeletal,” meaning that she would not be able to find a new home for a while.
When a second inspection was conducted in August 2023, Ms. Faherty declared that although the kennels were cleaner, they were still “inadequate,” reports RTE.
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