Man jailed over dog fights

Published: Tuesday, 15 April 2008, 12:47PM

A man who admitted training dogs to fight each other has been jailed for 18 weeks.

Clayton Beard was the first person to be prosecuted under the new Animal Welfare Act.

The 24-year-old from Walsall, West Midlands, pleaded guilty to possessing three pit bull terriers and causing unnecessary suffering to one dog through a failure to provide veterinary attention.

He also admitted possessing equipment adapted for training animals to fight - in this case, a treadmill and a makeshift veterinary kit - and keeping animals for use in connection with fighting.

Walsall Magistrates sentenced Beard to 18 weeks in custody and banned for him from keeping or being responsible for any animals for life.

Magistrate Michael Kearns said that a custodial sentence had been "inevitable" and told Beard that he had had in his possession three "highly dangerous dogs of an aggressive breed".

The three dogs had received many wounds "over a prolonged period which must have caused them suffering", but Beard had made "no effort" to obtain veterinary attention for them, the court heard.

Instead, Beard had been involved in treating the animals' wounds so that they could fight again. The court ordered the three dogs to be destroyed.

The court had heard that Beard was a man of "limited cognitive ability" who had received "abuse" from his neighbours.

Speaking outside court, Chief Inspector Ian Briggs, of the RSPCA's Special Operations Unit, said he was "extremely pleased" with the custodial sentence and ban.

He said: "People involved in these activities should not be able to own animals."

He said that animal protection bodies had welcomed the new offences of possessing articles adapted for training animals to fight, and keeping animals in connection with fighting.

"We always come across these articles on dog fighting operations, but before, it's never been an offence."

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