Sheffield man kept 13 dogs in freezing, squalid muddy pens filled with faeces in middle of winter
“Well meaning but incompetent care”
A Sheffield man who kept 13 dogs in squalor in the depths of winter has been banned from keeping animals for seven years.
Nicholas Fox, aged 39, of Mortomley Close, High Green, kept his pups outside in 10 freezing pens caked in mud and littered with faeces.
There was no water or warm bedding for the dogs even as officers from the RSPCA arrived to rescue them in the middle of winter.
Despite being served an order to improve his care of his dogs in November 2024, they were seized by police who attended with RSPCA officers on a return visit to the property on January 2, 2025, as temperatures plummeted.
Fox pleaded guilty to one offence of failing to meet the welfare needs of the canines under the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
At Sheffield Magistrates’ Court on July 31, Fox was handed an eight-week jail term suspended for two years. He was also banned from keeping animals for seven years.
RSPCA Inspector Vanessa Reid said in a statement presented to the court: “Most of the pens were housing multiple dogs and there were copious amounts of trodden in faeces, while there was no water or bedding.”
Among the dogs being kept were lurchers, beagle puppies, a saluki and a cocker spaniel. Some of the dogs appeared to have been pregnant.
While all the dogs were generally healthy they were confined in unsuitable conditions and there were concerns about their wellbeing, particularly during the cold weather. While one pen did have a heat lamp, the temperatures inside five of them was below freezing when recorded by the inspector.
A vet who examined the dogs said they were exposed to “prolonged thermal discomfort” and were kept in conditions that would have led to them suffering frustration, boredom, helplessness, fear and anxiety.
The court heard that mitigation for the defendant was that he was affected by mental health issues. It was stated that he was not a dog breeder and it had been a case of “well meaning, but incompetent care”.
The defendant was also told to pay court costs of £400 and a victim surcharge of £154.
The court made a deprivation order against the defendant, which means all the dogs can now be rehomed by the RSPCA.
Speaking after the sentencing, Inspector Reid: “These poor dogs were being kept outside in very poor accommodation in very cold weather and despite being previously advised to provide proper bedding for them as well as cleaning their pens the defendant failed to take the necessary actions.”