Arrest warrant for Leeds man whose dog wasted to ‘skin and bones’

Andrew Fawcett’s Staffordshire bull terrier was so badly emaciated she had to be put down when she was found shut in a filthy bedroom at Lovell Park Towers in Sheepscar.

The 23-year-old failed to attend his trial at Leeds Magistrates’ Court last month and was found guilty of three charges of animal cruelty in his absence. Today the RSPCA renewed its efforts to trace him.

The dog weighed just half what she should have when police were called to the flat in July 2011 and alerted the RSPCA and a vet, who put her to sleep at the scene.

RSPCA inspector Dave Holgate said: “This was a horrendous case. This poor dog was skin and bones when she was found. She weighed just 10.5kg. She should have weighed between 18-20kg.

“She was collapsed and suffering to such a degree the vet considered the most humane thing to do was to put her to sleep then and there.

“The vet found she had suffered a prolonged period of malnutrition, was dehydrated and in circulatory shock.

“She had been deprived of water for about one week and adequate nutrition for weeks.”

A female Staffordshire bull terrier puppy, a female cat and a gecko were also seized from the address by police and placed in RSPCA care. They were signed over to the RSPCA and rehomed.

“They were the lucky ones here,” said Mr Holgate. “She had been shut in a bedroom, apparently out of sight out of mind, but it’s impossible to imagine she didn’t bark and cry before her strength failed her, and that she wasn’t heard by those who she relied on.”

It is not known how long the dog had been kept shut in the bedroom but it was covered in faeces.

RSPCA inspector Holgate said: “We very much hope that Fawcett will hand himself in to police and failing that, that anyone who knows where he is will contact us or the police so that he may be sentenced by the court.”