A mother and daughter from Sturgeon Falls have been prohibited from owning animals for 10 years after pleading guilty to animal cruelty charges says the OSPCA.
On March 19, Tracy McLeod, 48, and Alyssa Ethier, 29, pled guilty in a Sturgeon Falls court to:
- permitting an animal to be in distress,
- failing to provide the care necessary for their general welfare,
- failing to provide sanitary living conditions and
- failing to provide adequate and appropriate food and water.
A Justice of the Peace sentenced the pair to a 10-year prohibition on owning, caring for, or residing with animals. They are also subject to unannounced inspections by OSPCA officers.
On September 27, 2017, an Ontario SPCA officer with the North Bay and District Humane Society went to a home in Sturgeon Falls after receiving a complaint about the welfare of animals at the home. The officer identified two Labrador Retriever-type puppies approximately four months old, as well as two cats, living in unsanitary conditions with high ammonia levels.
The owners were unable to produce any food for the animals and no water was available.
Orders were issued to the owner to ensure the animals were provided with adequate and appropriate food and water, sanitary living conditions, and a reduced ammonia level.
A search warrant was executed on October 2, 2017, after the owners of the animals failed to comply with issued Orders. The cats and dogs were found to be continuing to live in unsanitary conditions inside the apartment, which was soiled with garbage, debris, urine, and feces. The dogs were confined to a bedroom with no access to food or water.
The officer removed the animals and took them to a veterinary clinic to be examined. The veterinarian determined that the animals had external parasites and one of the dogs was found to be in lean body condition. The animals were treated for their conditions and were later adopted out.
“Animals are sentient beings that require proper care and housing. Failing to provide essential care is inhumane to them,” says Lynn Michaud, Senior Inspector, Ontario SPCA.
