More sickening animal stories

Company director, 49, accused of killing next-door neighbour's Alsatian with a carving knife

A millionaire property tycoon has appeared in court accused of stabbing his neighbour’s guard dog to death with a kitchen knife.

Mark Deeley, 49, knifed an Alsatian called Max below his front right leg after it ran into his garden and mauled his seven-year-old Labrador Bertie, it is claimed.

The alleged attack happened in the front garden of Deeley’s £534,000 detached house in an exclusive area of Coventry just after 8am on November 26.

Mark Deeley knifed an Alsatian called Max after it ran into his garden and mauled his seven-year-old cream Labrador Bertie, it is claimed

His owners, brother and sister property developers Susan Kaur, 39, and Tarlo Singh, 33, discovered Max’s body under a hedge and called the police.

They say five-year-old Max squeezed through a gap in the wire fence which separates the courtyard of their £1-million property with Deeley’s front garden.

On Tuesday the father-of-two appeared at Coventry Magistrates Court charged with criminal damage relating to the death of Max.

 

More...

• Caught on CCTV: The sickening moment diplomat's son battered lovable labrador puppy 20 times

Deeley, who is listed as a company director of a lettings agency in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, only spoke to confirm his name and address during the five-minute hearing.

Jez Newsome, prosecuting, told the court: ‘A neighbour’s dog got into his garden and attacked his own dog.

‘He went into the kitchen and put his hands on a kitchen knife and delivered one blow killing the dog.

‘A lengthy investigation still needs to be processed.’

Max was owned by brother and sister property developers Susan Kaur and Tarlo Singh. Ms Kaur is pictured outside his kennel

The alleged attack happened in the front garden of Deeley's home (pictured) in an exclusive area of Coventry

District Judge Ian Gillespie granted Deeley unconditional bail and ordered him to appear back at court on January 6.

Mr Tarlo and Miss Kaur attended the hearing and sat in the public gallery.

Today Miss Kaur, who is not married and has no children, said Max was trained by Sussex Police as a guard dog.

She added: ‘Max ran over to a gap in the hedge by his kennel. I came out half-an-hour later and found him dead on the floor under the hedge.

‘Max had obviously crawled back under the hedge where he bled to death. 

‘At first I thought he was sleeping but then I saw a huge blood patch spreading underneath his body. It was horrific.

Miss Kaur, who has lived next door to Deeley for five years, also has four other pet dogs, eight-month-old Alsatian Sky, Yorkshire Terriers Snuggles, three, and Freddie, one, and a four-year-old Miniature Maltese called Poppy.

Deeley, who is captain of Kenilworth Cricket Club in Warwickshire, bought his sprawling property for £345,000 in 1999 but it is now believed to be worth around £1million.

Animal abuse crosses all classes:

Caught on CCTV: The sickening moment diplomat's son battered labrador puppy 20 times because he was 'having a bad day'

A diplomat's son who viciously kicked and punched his puppy because he was 'having a bad day' after being turned down for a job has narrowly avoided being locked up for the horrific attack.

Mohammed Abou-Sabaa, whose father is a prominent Tunisian official, was caught on CCTV raining down more than 20 blows on his labrador, Poppy, as she cowered in terror.

In a final, sickening, attack, the 21-year-old student was filmed kicking the blameless pet down a flight of steps outside his luxury city centre flat.

Attack: Mohammed Abou-Sabaa was caught on CCTV brutally abusing his five-month-old labrador puppy

Abou-Sabaa was seen raining down more than 20 blows on the puppy as she cowered in terror

But despite his behaviour being branded 'despicable' by RSPCA inspectors, magistrates agreed to let him walk free from court, imposing a suspended prison sentence and banning him from keeping animals for four years.

They told him they were letting him off because he was in full-time education - however it emerged yesterday he is likely to face disciplinary action from the authorities at Manchester University over his conviction for animal cruelty.

Brazen Abou-Sabaa punched and kicked the dog outside the entrance to his building, stopping when a fellow resident went indoors before resuming the unprovoked assault.

Punishment: Diplomat's son Abou-Sabaa was given a six-week sentence, suspended for two years,

An investigation was launched after the appalled caretaker saw the attack on CCTV and contacted the RSPCA.

When he appeared in court, shocked magistrates asked for the gruelling six-minute video footage to be stopped because they couldn't bear to sit through it all.

It shows the uncomprehending, mild-mannered pet cowering while Abou-Sabaa beats it ferociously, stopping only to mop his brow.

At one stage he yanks the puppy up by its neck then slaps it to the ground, also standing on the terrified dog with his full weight.

Finally he uses his knee to launch her down a stairwell. 

Poppy was seized by RSPCA inspectors and has made a full physical recovery from the attack in July.

Abou-Sabaa told investigators he had been having a bad day after learning he had failed with a job application and was training the dog.

But David McCormick, prosecuting for the RSPCA, told Manchester magistrates it was a sustained and brutal attack – a 'wanton and deliberate act of cruelty.'

'The defendant was seen wiping sweat from his brow and only stopped the assault when people entered the building and then carried on when they had gone,' he added.

John Hera, defending, said Abou-Sabba had acted out of character. 'Something clicked inside him and there was lots of anger. He is full of remorse.'

Abou-Sabaa, from Manchester, pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to Poppy.
Magistrates decided not to jail him immediately because of his age, his guilty plea, and because he was in full-time education.

Jane Dyson, chairwoman of the bench, said: 'This is simply a terrible demonstration of cruelty to a vulnerable puppy. None of us have seen anything like it – you have just avoided prison.'

He was instead given a six-week sentence, suspended for two years, and ordered to do 250 hours of unpaid work. 

He was also banned from keeping animals for four years and told to pay £1,000 costs.

Afterwards RSPCA inspector Paul Heaton said: 'It was a despicable act. I was incensed when I saw the video – it just went on and on. 

Recovered: Poppy the labrador has now made a full recovery and the RSPCA is trying to rehome her

'He said he had applied for a job apparently and had not got it and he was having a bad day. 

'I do not know of any training school that says that smacking a dog is a way of training it.'

Abou-Sabaa's father, a Tunisian diplomat, travelled from his home country to hear the case. 

He said afterwards: 'I have had words with my son and my family and I want to apologise for what he did.'

Abou-Sabaa is studying mechatronics - a combination of engineering and electronics.

While a criminal conviction for animal cruelty doesn't automatically bar him from the course, he could be suspended for bringing the university into disrepute.

A spokesman for Manchester University said: 'We are looking into this case.'

Poppy is being looked after by the RSPCA and is likely to be rehomed in the new year after the court signed her over to their care.

Mr Heaton added: 'Poppy is fine now. She is doing okay.

Britain's staffie problem continued

Just in case anyone failed to watch this when it came out a couple of months ago. Be warned, there are some upsetting scenes.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00tcfmp

No such thing as a dangerous dog

Today saw the happy return of one of my favourite little clients, a small Yorkshire terrier called D. D was a fairly regular client of 4Paws along with his 'sister' B until earlier this year. Tragedy struck when D and B were being walked on Hampstead Heath, near the South End Green fair ground site. Out of the blue the dogs were attacked by a staffie/mastiff cross and poor B was mauled to death. The killer dog was being walked by a couple of youths who fled with their dogs after the attack. That's right, once their dog had savaged another in an unprovoked attack they turned around and left it to die. Despicable.


Despite D & B's owners' best efforts the owners and dogs responsible for this attack have not been brought to justice. After all they don't care, nor apparently do the police. Today was D's first day of daycare since the attack and he brought with him his new baby sister 'G' a beautiful 5 month old Yorkie.


But this sad tale isn't over . A few weeks ago G and D were once again attacked by a pair of staffie/mastiff crosses on Hampstead Heath. This time on the tree lined avenue leading from East Heath Road, just near the water fountain. At the time of the attack G weighed just 1.5 kilos, she was set upon by a much larger dog who made a beeline for her. Despite the dog wearing a muzzle G suffered serious injuries, her eye was prolapsed and it was feared she might lose the sight in it. However, after several weeks of hospital treatment G is doing really well and we were happy to meet her properly today.


When B was attacked I offered my sympathies to the owners and tried to reassure them by saying it was an unlucky, one in a million event. Yet less than 6 months later the very same thing happened in the same place. Despite living only five minutes from some of the most beautiful outdoor space London has to offer D's owners will no longer walk him and G on Hampstead Heath, and who can blame them?


Such attacks are clearly not random or isolated, if you ask dog walkers on the Heath all know of someone who has had a dog recently attacked. Almost without exception these dogs have been attacked by staffie/mastiff mixes and Rottweilers. 


It is outrageous that such a large dog walking community should live in fear of these animals. Just the other day I met a man with a young staffie that was being walked off the lead and without a collar. I asked myself how he expected to control the dog should a dangerous situation present itself. Similarly there is an owner who is now being avoided as he has an out of control young staffie and an older rescue Rottie. Too many people who have seen the animals 'at play' have mentioned that this pair are an accident waiting to happen. 


We in the UK are known to be animal lovers yet it appears to be a twisted combination of naivete and political correctness that allows dangerous dogs to walk the street leaving death and destruction in their wake. Far too many people hold staffies up as loyal and friendly dogs yet they are the number one animal killer on our streets and their presence has left many dog owners terrified. 


Staffordshire Bull Terriers were bred to fight and kill, they have a strong prey drive and tend to be very dog aggressive. Anybody who tells you otherwise is lying. Yes, there are some that are lovely but I would never trust one not to turn, it is in their nature. I don't judge the staffies for being like this anymore than I judge a lion for killing its prey. I lay the blame at the feet of a society that is burying its head in the sand and is unwilling to accept that we really have created a monster.


Mainly, however, I feel sad, sad that so many of these dogs are being bred, sad that they are being used as a status symbol and encouraged to fight, sad for the hundreds of pet owners (myself included) who have suffered the heartache of having their pet savaged by someone else's, sad for every dog who is killed unnecessarily, sad for the scarred and traumatised survivors like Dulce and Gigi, and sad that so many of these killer dogs end up being euthanised.


This problem is already out of hand. I, like many other small dog owners, no longer walk my dog in the local parks of Islington, nor on the streets near my home. Why? because I can guarantee that I will see staffie after staffie, many of them without leads or even collars and I don't want to have my dog dicing with death. 


Did I mention that there's apparently no such thing as a dangerous dog?

It's that time of year...kennel cough is doing the rounds again

Once more kennel cough is doing the rounds of North London parks causing suffering to both dogs and their owners. But how serious is it and how best to treat it? 


Well the good news is that kennel cough is rarely serious and never fatal. Usually it is what vets call 'self limiting'  - this means that it goes away all by itself without the need for any veterinary treatment. In this way kennel cough (KC) is much like a human cold, and like human colds no two strains are the same. KC tends to be caused by a combination of a virus and bacteria and while there are strains which are more common these change all the time.


For most owners the first sign that their dog is unwell is the classic cough. Typically this sounds like your dog has something stuck in his throat and is often accompanied by retching and the dog bringing up a little phlegm. Depending upon the severity of the strain your dog may appear completely well except for the cough or he may seem a little listless. Unless your dog is very young, old or suffering from other health problems a trip to the vet is probably not necessary. Instead if you want to ease the symptoms you can offer your dog a small amount of cough linctus with glycerol/honey a few times a day. This will help soothe his throat and hopefully minimise coughing. Beyond this you should keep your dog warm and quiet at home until the symptoms disappear. 


Kennel cough is very contagious so it is a good idea not to exercise your dog in public until his symptoms have gone. Bear in mind however that by the time your dog exhibits symptoms he will have been carrying the bug for a few days and so could have inadvertently infected his friends.


While this may sound worrying there is little that can be done after the fact except warning your friends to keep an eye on their dog's health. Again, much like the human cold KC can spread rapidly and, while irritating, it is not usually a cause for concern.


Some vets offer a nasal spray which helps protect against KC. Much like the flu jab in humans this can be beneficial for the young, old and infirm but will not protect against every bout of KC doing the rounds. Instead it aims to reduce your dog's susceptibility to picking up KC when your dog is exposed to it and ultimately limit the severity of the episode should your dog still catch kennel cough.


Usually your dog should shake off KC within about 10 days. However if it lasts much longer a trip to the vets is recommended.

Panorama - UK chain of vets exposed

It Shouldn't Happen at a Vets


Back in July Panorama aired a programme exposing the rather dubious practices carried out by one of the UK's largest veterinary chains. Panorama showed secret footage of rough, inconsiderate handling of pets, procedures being carried out by untrained staff, inflated prices and overcharging amongst other things. This programme is well worth watching and raises questions about who we allow to care for our pets in their hour of need.




Click HERE to watch this documentary

Hampstead Heath toy and small dog play group

We have recently set up a playgroup for toy and small dogs in North London. The meetup group is called Hampstead Heath toy and small dog play group. The idea is to hold regular meetings on Hampstead Heath for toy dogs and their owners. Hampstead Heath provides the ideal location for dogs to run around and have lots of fun, something even small dogs like to do! 

Our first meeting is scheduled for Saturday September 11th, time and exact location tbc.

Click HERE for more info