Woman left starving dog on balcony of Old Kent Road flat

The RSPCA’s cruelty line received a video showing a very thin dog which had been left on the balcony of a property on Old Kent Road. 

On December 13 last year officers attended Shereane Brown’s address and found her two-year-old female bull breed dog, Stone, who was in an emaciated state. 

Animal Rescue Officer Sidonie Smith, who attended, said: “Stone was severely emaciated and had pressure sores all over her rear end. Her paws were red and sore, with long claws and she also had scabs on her ears. 

“She was very subdued and just stayed in a sitting position the whole time I was in the flat. When I had asked the defendant how her dog came to be so underweight she stated it was not her dog and that her son had brought it home a few months ago. 

“She said she’d been trying everyday to get her registered at a vets because she wasn't putting on weight. I asked why, if she was worried about the dog, and if she couldn't get through to a vet, she didn't just walk into a practice. 

“On the way back to my vehicle Stone struggled to walk and fell a few times on her front legs. She seemed very weak and she was shaking.” 

Stone weighed just 13kg (Image: RSPCA) Stone was taken from the address and admitted to Finsbury Park Animal Hospital. 

Vets said she weighed just 13.05kgs and scored one out of a nine on a body condition scale (a healthy score would be five). 

The vet said her condition was the result of starvation rather than underlying disease. 

“I believe that Stone was fed an inadequate diet which led to her becoming emaciated. She was suffering for at least four weeks, but it is likely that it was for longer,” the vet said. 

“Pressure sores are common in underweight dogs, especially if they are not provided with padded bedding. Her condition would have been obvious to a lay person and her suffering could have been avoided by feeding an appropriate diet and seeking veterinary advice.” 

Shereane Brown, 44, of Old Kent Road, was later charged with causing unnecessary suffering to Stone by failing to investigate her loss of weight and poor body condition. 

On October 1 she was given a one-year community order including 150 hours of unpaid work. 

Brown was also disqualified from keeping pets for 10 years. 

In mitigation it was said on Brown’s behalf that she did her “incompetent best” for Stone. 

Stone has since made a good recovery and has more than doubled in weight. 

Stone has doubled in weight since going into RSPCA-approved care, she's now looking for her forever home (Image: RSPCA) She is currently being cared for at RSPCA-approved private boarding kennels in Kent and the charity said they will now try to find her a loving new home. 

Speaking after the sentencing, Inspector Beaman said: “The defendant had enough time to address Stone’s weight loss. If she was really struggling to feed the dog properly then she could have sought help from the RSPCA’s foodbank scheme or at one of our local branches.  

“Stone’s weight loss was so concerning that had the defendant just walked into a local vets the dog would have been seen and treated.”