Starving dog found chewing yogurt pots

A mother-of-three from Bilston was today facing being banned from keeping animals after her pet dog was found to be so hungry it was chewing plastic yogurt pots.

Staffordshire bull terrier Roxy weighed just 18lbs when rescued by the RSPCA and was so thin its bones could be seen through its coat, Wolverhampton Magistrates Court was told. The one-year-old bitch was also suffering fur loss, had mites and was mildly dehydrated. On a scale of one to nine, with one being at the point of death, a vet rated Roxy as two.

The dog's owner Louise Lewis, aged 25, appeared in court yesterday where she pleaded guilty to three charges of failing to provide the dog with an adequately wholesome and nutritious diet, not investigating why it was underweight and failing to provide it with the proper veterinary care in relation to a skin disease.

The RSPCA discovered Roxy's plight after investigators visited Lewis' home in Clinton Road following a tip-off from a concerned resident.

Chris Sutton, prosecuting on behalf of the RSPCA, said: "When the dog was produced after an RSPCA inspector visited her house, there was very little fat on it and significant fur loss on its head, chin and neck. The inspector noticed it was subdued and tried to eat yoghurt pots."

In her defence the court was told Lewis had been "extremely saddened" by what had happened and had taken Roxy to see a vet previously. The court was told there were times the family struggled to eat and the dog was the last to be fed.

Lewis will be sentenced on Monday. A ban on keeping animals was not ruled out.