Dogs: Tredegar woman banned from keeping animals

A woman has been banned from keeping dogs for five years after housing nearly 100 animals in a "hell hole".

Julie Newcombe, from Tredegar, Blaenau Gwent, kept labradors, dachshunds and French bull dogs - in "disgusting conditions" contaminated with faeces and urine.

RSPCA Chief Inspector Elaine Spence called it the worst case she had seen.

The court heard Newcombe's ex-boyfriend "had control" of her at the time of the offence.

Newport Magistrates' Court heard Newcombe was selling the animals and was trying to make a sale when police arrived at her home.

She failed to provide the dogs with enough living space and was found guilty of one offence under the animal welfare act.

RSPCA images showed the animals kept in a "filthy environment" at Newcombe's property in Tredegar in 2020.

The court heard the prosecution had cost the RSPCA £200,000 because of the number of animals involved.

Ch Insp Elaine Spence said it was "the most awful sight imaginable".

She added: "One of the rooms downstairs was black, there was no light, dogs were stacked on one another in cages... those dogs were living in a hell hole."

During sentencing, Judge Toms said the animals were "clearly in distress, clearly in a small space, clearly in filth".

However, she said she recognised the defendant's boyfriend at the time "had control" over her and that she was in a "domestic abusive relationship".

She said Newcombe "found herself in the most desperate of situations".

Newcombe was disqualified from keeping dogs, participating in keeping dogs and dealing in dogs for five years.

She was also sentenced to a twelve-month community order, which means she will be supervised by the probation service and required to carry out 20 days of activities.

Reflecting on the sentence, Ch Insp Spence said the RSPCA were "satisfied" with the outcome.

"This is an extremely serious case of animal welfare," she said.

"It must be up there at the top of the cases we have had to investigate in Wales in recent years.

"It had a profound effect on all of us. Those images will never leave me."

She added puppy farming was "a significant problem within Wales" with "hundreds of thousands of pounds" involved in cases such as this one.

Speaking after the hearing, Newcombe's lawyer said his client was "very disappointed" with the findings and intended to lodge an appeal.