Telford man jailed after dogs found injured
Two men who failed to take injured dogs to a vet have been found guilty of causing suffering to the animals.
Samuel Boylett was jailed for causing suffering to dogs in his care, while Mark Paddock was handed a suspended sentence.
The pair were found guilty by District Judge Nigel Cadbury at Shrewsbury Magistrates Court yesterday of charges relating to causing unnecessary suffering to protected animals.
Nine terrier and lurcher-type dogs were seized from Boylett's home in Burtondale, Brookside, Telford, in a police and RSPCA raid.
Boylett, 33, was found guilty of five charges relating to dogs Tess, Jack, Pinto, Arnie and another unknown dog. He was sentenced to 24 weeks in jail and was told he could not have anything to do with dogs for 10 years.
Paddock, 45, of no fixed abode, was found guilty of one charge relating to a single dog. He was sentenced to 12 weeks in jail, suspended for two years, and was ordered not to have anything to do with dogs for five years.
The judge agreed to suspend the disqualification orders after defence solicitor Nigel Weller said appeals would be launched.
The court heard the dogs were found with injuries which experts during the trial said were consistent with bite wounds.
The two men had been previously been charged with dog fighting. But the charges were thrown after Mr Weller said that the men were hunting and could have been carrying out "fox flushing" exercises.
District Judge Cadbury, sentencing the pair, said: "You did not take these dogs to the vet because you were worried and concerned about the vet discovering how they had been caused and that would have led to reports to the police and or the RSPCA."
