Twelve cats starved to death in this squalid flat but owner is spared jail

RSPCA OFFICERS WERE ABLE TO RESCUE TWO ANIMALS THAT HAVE NOW BEEN REHOMED

- By OSCAR FISHER

A DERBYSHIRE woman has been spared an immediate jail sentence after 12 cats were found starved to death in her flat, in a case magistrates described as “one of the most distressing” they had seen.

The skeletal remains of the animals were discovered strewn throughout the one-bedroom property in April last year.

Two surviving cats were rescued by the RSPCA after reports that “live and dead cats” were inside.

In his evidence to the court, RSPCA animal rescue officer Neil Coleman, said: “The property was full of piled up clothing, as well as cat faeces across the floor.

“There was a deceased skeletal cat upon entrance to the front door. Within the living room there were five dead skeletal cats.

“We entered the bedroom where there was a deceased skeletal cat at the foot of the bed, and another dead black cat underneath the bed which was still intact.

“On the left hand side of the bed, there was a further deceased cat, partially decomposed. Another dead tortoiseshell cat was found within the bedroom wardrobe.”

While searching through various bags of items, the remains of two kittens were found wrapped in clothing. There was no food or water for the cats anywhere in the flat.

Milk found inside the fridge, which had been turned off, had expired at the end of December 2023, suggesting no one had been living at the property in Highfield Road, Chesterfield, for a considerable time. Two female cats were also found alive in the bedroom, in a scared and skittish state.