The cruel dog owner who allowed his pet to suffer a painful skin disease for months

A man has been jailed and banned from keeping dogs for five years after letting his dog suffer with a painful skin disease for up to six months. His pet Mylo's skin was thickened, pink, flaky, scabby and bleeding on his legs, feet, stomach, chest and genital area, a court heard.

The RSCPA said the male tan chihuahua type also had obvious fur loss and pinkness around his eyes and nose and was biting and scratching at his irritated skin. He was rescued from outside a supermarket by a member of the public along with a black and white female chihuahua, called Lily, who needed an urgent dental procedure to remove loose teeth as she had dental disease. RSPCA Inspector Amy McIntosh said both dogs were microchipped which enabled them to establish that Stephen Hopkinson, from Fleetwood in Lancashire, was the owner of the pets. He has now been jailed and banned from keeping dogs, LancsLive has reported.

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A court heard that, when Hopkinson was questioned the next day, he told Inspector McIntosh he had returned to the supermarket to get the dogs that morning.

This meant that had the dogs not been removed by the passer-by they would have potentially been tied up outside for nearly 24 hours. Following a trial last year, Hopkinson was found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to Mylo, failing to meet Lilly’s needs and failing to meet both dogs’ needs by leaving them unattended for an extended period without adequate care and supervision.

Hopkinson, of Southwood Avenue, Fleetwood, has now been sentenced to four weeks in jail after he lost his appeal against convictions for animal cruelty. The 28-year-old