A cruel pet owner starved two German Shepherd puppies then buried one in her back garden.
Sylvia Woodward avoided jail but was given a 12 week suspended sentence and has been banned from keeping animals for life after starving Sam and Merlin.
RSPCA officers attended the property in Malton, North Yorks, after receiving disturbing photos of two extremely underweight dogs.
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When they arrived, they found black-painted windows, an overgrown garden, and no sign of the animals.
A day later, Woodward, 69, called the charity and handed over Merlin but claimed Sam had escaped.
Sylvia later claimed to the RSPCA that Sam had starved to death and she’d buried his body in the garden.
His remains weren’t recovered, but vets concluded he’d endured the same horrific neglect as Merlin.
Merlin was described as “subdued and very nervous” and was drastically underweight at just 8.6kg.
The vet who examined him said he’d endured “months” of suffering, both physically and psychologically.
Tragically, Merlin’s health deteriorated further and he was put to sleep weeks later.
Both dogs were under one-year-old, as reported by Need to Know.
Sylvia appeared for sentencing at York Magistrates Court on 4 September after previously pleading guilty to one Animal Welfare Act offence at an earlier hearing.
Animal Rescue Officer Dack said: “As I pulled up in my vehicle, Woodward was already standing on the doorstep with a German Shepherd dog on a lead.
“She said it was Merlin.
“The dog appeared subdued and very nervous and I assessed his body condition score to be approximately 1.5 out of nine.
“I asked Woodward where the second dog named Sam was.
“She informed me he had escaped shortly after our earlier phone call.
“She had no idea where the dog was now.
“She did not appear to be overly concerned by this and just informed me that she would call us if the dog turned up.”
The vet who examined Merlin added: “At first glance, and in my professional opinion, Merlin showed signs of abuse.
“His body condition score was one.
“His ribs, lumbar vertebrae, pelvic bones and all the other bony prominences were evident from a distance.
“There was no discernible body fat and obvious loss of muscle mass.
“His coat was also in a bad condition.
“He was very tiny, small and underdeveloped for a German Shepherd puppy of his age.
“At the time of examination he was only 8.6 kilograms in weight.
“The amount of psychological abuse suffered by Merlin is unknown.
“He was clearly suffering from malnutrition and neglect, when brought in by the officer.
“He had been suffering from it for months by the look of his body condition and physical state.”
Sylvia was also ordered to pay costs of £400 and a £154 victim surcharge.
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