A Kirkcaldy woman who neglected a dog so badly its claws were grown almost into its paws had rescued it from backyard breeders.
Siobhan Wallace claimed Covid restrictions prevented professional groomers from treating the dog as they needed two people to hold it down.
She had also allowed the Shih Tzu’s fur to become painfully matted.
She said the same rules had stopped her taking the dog Daisy, to a vet.
Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court heard Wallace had been the one to contact the Scottish SPCA after realising she was struggling.
The 36-year-old was fined £375 but escaped a ban on keeping animals.
Scottish SPCA called
Fiscal depute Michael Robertson said: “On March 7 2021 the accused contacted the SSPCA hotline stating she was the owner of a Shih Tzu named Daisy.
“She stated the dog was scratching incessantly and had patches of hair loss and that there was a strong smell from it.
“She said its claws were so long that they were curling round into the paws.
“She was asked if she had sought vet treatment but stated she hadn’t attended for seven months due to Covid restrictions.”
Following the call attempts were made to contact Wallace to arrange a home visit, with inspectors managing to do so two days later.
Inspector Stephanie Ross attended her property and noticed an “overpowering smell of yeast”.
Mr Robertson continued: “The dog appeared very unkempt – matted hair with a strong smell coming from her.
“The accused stated she had no money to take her to a vet and wanted to sign her over to the SSPCA.”
Wallace relinquished the dog, which has since made a full recovery.
Badly treated by previous owners
Solicitor David Cranston, defending, said Wallace had saved the dog from its unscrupulous former owners.
“The dog had not been well-loved by its previous owners.
“It was kept outside and seems to have been used for breeding – this appears to have been quite lucrative.
“But having reached the end of her purpose the owners made her (Wallace) aware they were going to get rid of it and that would not have been in the most humane way.”
He said the dog was so terrified by its previous treatment a grooming salon was unable to treat it on a one-to-one basis and the two-to-one ratio needed was forbidden by lockdown laws.
Mr Cranston added Wallace had taken steps to do right by the dog, stating: “She could have tied it to a tree and made it someone else’s problem but realising she had a problem, she contacted the SSPCA.”
Stopped short of dog ban
Wallace, of Valley Gardens, Kirkcaldy, admitted neglecting the dog at another address in the town between November 2020 and March 9 last year by failing to seek veterinary treatment for a number of ailments.
Sheriff Alison McKay said she was concerned by the amount of time it took Wallace to seek help from the Scottish SPCA.
However, she stopped short of issuing an animal banning order, stating it was apparent Wallace is now more aware of the expense of keeping a dog.
