Animal ban for Brierley Hill pair who sold ill pet dog on Facebook

Joseph Salter and Cally Ricard did not seek veterinary treatment for their British bulldog despite its fast deteriorating health while in their care, instead selling it for £80 after posting an advert on the social networking site.

The pair, who have now split up, had to help drag the six-year-old dog, called Molly, into the back of the buyers Joanne Bennett and Natalie Morris' car - and would not give over the ill dog until the cash was handed over.

Dudley Magistrates Court heard yesterday that Salter showed the buyers into the back garden where the animal was lying on a dirty dog bed, which was soaking and mouldy.

The dog was suffering from a life-threatening uterine condition called pyometra, and would have died if Mrs Bennett and Mrs Morris did not pass it onto the RSPCA, according to the animal charity.

At Dudley Magistrates' Court yesterday, Salter, aged 22, of Lakeside Court, Brierley Hill, and Ricard, 23, of Woods Crescent, Brierley Hill, appeared for sentencing after both pleading guilty to failing to getting veterinary care for the dog and failing in their duty as owners.

Mr John Fellows, chairman of the bench, disqualified the pair from keeping, looking after and owning any animal for 10 years each.

He also ordered them to pay £500 each toward a £4,761 bill from veterinary and court costs.

They were also told to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work each.

Mr Nick Sutton, prosecuting, said: "These two people showed a callous disregard to the welfare of an animal.

"In this case they have not provided the dog with necessary veterinary treatment, then they attempted to sell it on top of that."

Mr Sutton told the court how the dog was brought to the attention of the RSPCA in February last year after Mrs Bennett and Mrs Morris saw a Facebook advert posted by the pair.

He said the two women, after seeing the condition the dog was in and where it was being kept, refused to leave without it and paid the cash to take it home. But after feeding the dog and letting it rest overnight, the women noticed no improvement and took it to the RSPCA, where it made a full recovery.

Mr Sutton said: "Had it not been for the action of the two women to put their hands in their pockets and take the dog away it would have been dead – there is no shadow of a doubt about that."

Mr Sutton said: "This couple did not care for the dog's illness – they did nothing when it was blindingly obvious they should have done something."

When the women were shown into the couple's house, they described finding the dog on a cushion in the back garden with a milky liquid coming from its body.

It hardly moved as they approached. Mr Sutton said: "The women described the dog as lethargic. They also couldn't believe how thin it was.

"The situation caused so much distress to the women that one of them cried.

"They were determined to take the dog away from the address – but the defendant wouldn't release the animal until they paid the price for it.

"On taking the dog, it cowered down as they approached and the women needed the assistance of the defendants to put it into the back of the car."

Mr William Harrison, defending the former couple, said, although the dog should have been given veterinary care, its health had quickly deteriorated.

The couple, who said in interview they could not afford to take the dog to the vets, had inherited the pet from their landlord in December 2011.

After sentencing the couple, Mr Fellows said: "We commend the good citizenship of the two ladies who reported the matter to the RSPCA.

After the case, Mrs Bennett, aged 43, of Halesowen, said: "This was a really great result.

"They may have thought they got away with it, but we weren't going to give up – I'd do that 100 times over if in the same position again."

Mrs Bennett said Molly had now fully recovered and was being looked after by Mrs Morris, aged 45.