A cruel petsitter and her partner were caught on camera repeatedly abusing two dogs they charged over £1,000 to look after.
Paige Williams and partner Bradley Regan Archer appeared in court after videos emerged of them dragging, kicking, hitting and screaming at dogs they were being paid to care for.
Petsitter Williams, 26, of Kenilworth Road, Knowle, West Mids, billed a family for caring for their three dogs, two cats and two birds of prey while they were on holiday for four weeks in July and August 2024.
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Her partner – Archer, 26, previously of Balsall Street, Balsall Common – joined her at the family’s home in Balsall Common to help take care of the animals.
When the family returned from holiday, they looked back at video captured on cameras in the kitchen and garden and found distressing footage.
They submitted 51 videos of evidence to the RSPCA, which launched an investigation, as reported by Need To Know.
In one of the clips, Williams appears to address the owners directly, via the camera, saying: “I will never look after your dogs again, my animals have suffered this month. My animals. I’ve had enough.”
Both were caught on camera shouting and swearing at the dogs, roughly dragging them by their collars, holding them off the ground, pushing them through doorways and pushing them down.
A petsitter is seen mishandling a dog inside a home and garden, in footage later used as evidence in an animal cruelty case. (Jam Press/RSPCA)
The couple appeared at Coventry Magistrates’ Court after Williams pleaded guilty to one offence of failing to meet the needs of two dogs.
Archer had earlier pleaded not guilty and was due to stand trial but changed his plea.
All of the incidents captured on the cameras involved a 13-month-old dog called Ayrton and a three-year-old dog called Frieda – both German Shorthaired Pointers.
Commercial petsitter Williams, who operated under the name Fur & Filly PetCare Services, was charging £1,400 to look after the animals, though the family didn’t pay the invoice after uncovering the abuse.
Magistrates sentenced Williams to a 12-month community order with 140 hours of unpaid work and ordered her to pay £350 costs and a £114 victim surcharge.
Archer had stayed at the property during the four-week job and was also sentenced to a 12-month community order with 40 hours of unpaid work.
And the court ordered him to pay £750 costs and a £114 victim surcharge.
Both were disqualified from keeping all animals for seven years.
Williams can no longer be responsible for the care of any animal, and therefore should not operate as a petsitter.
Speaking after the court hearing, RSPCA Inspector Ben Jones said: “It’s a big decision to leave your pets in the care of someone else and, in this case, the family were leaving their pets with someone they felt they could trust.
“Sadly, Williams and Archer betrayed their trust with care that fell below the standards the law requires, with Ayrton and Frieda subject to four weeks of wanton intimidatory behaviour and abuse.
“What made this case even more shocking is that they were clearly aware of the presence of the cameras and even appeared to speak directly to the dogs’ owners through the cameras amid such inappropriate animal care.
“Poor Ayrton seemed to be at the sharp end of most of Ms Williams and Mr Archer’s anger.
“He was locked in a crate which left him crying and whining, he was tethered to a tree – with water left just out of his reach – and he was chased around the garden and threatened with a stick.
“He was handled very inappropriately, with a slip lead used to yank him around and even flip him up into the air.
“When he jumped up at Archer he was whipped at several times with the same lead.”
A vet who watched the footage said in her witness statement to the court that the Ayrton and Frieda showed signs of anxiety and stress.
She added: “Both dogs are handled in a way that would have negatively affected their mental welfare due to crating, being shouted at, inconsistent training and their physical welfare, dragging by the collar, yanking on slip leads and lifting the dog’s body weight from the ground by the neck.”
In mitigation, the court heard that Ayrton was a lively, young dog who could be challenging to deal with.
Magistrates were also told that Williams was in the early stages of pregnancy at the time and was struggling to cope with hormonal changes.
But the court heard that the family had been introduced to Williams by a friend and had used her several times over the years, with no concerns, before asking her to have the animals for the four-week period in 2024.
They left instructions to care for them as well as emergency numbers.
Inspector Jones added: “They had no concerns about their pets until they returned home and found them to be quieter than normal, cowering if their son was too loud when playing.
“When they checked the cameras they were shocked by what they found.”
The dogs who were “subdued, anxious and distressed” when they were reunited with their family are now said to be doing well.
But the family said the experience has had a lasting impact on them all.
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