Former County Durham GP sentenced for allowing cats and dogs to live in squalor

Nicola Stirk, of Eight Houses in Hutton Henry, ignored warnings about the state of the property, where a Doberman, a Borzoi and two cats were living before they were removed by the RSPCA.

At a sentencing hearing at Teesside Magistrates last Tuesday (20 October), Stirk (DoB 03/08/1963) was also given a 15-month community order after admitting she had failed to meet the animals’ needs and provide them with a suitable environment.

Magistrates were told RSPCA Inspector Rowena Proctor went to the property on 3 February this year after concerns had been raised with the charity.

In her written statement to the court the officer said: “Upon entering the front door, the passageway was littered with faeces and rubbish. The sofa had been chewed by the dogs to the point it was unusable. The floors throughout, bar one small area in the living room, were completely covered in rubbish, faeces and urine.

“The pathway through to the kitchen and the kitchen itself was the same - faeces in almost every single place you could look and every surface and area was just filthy. The dogs lived downstairs with a baby gate to prevent them going upstairs and the cats, I was informed, lived upstairs. 

“The spare bedroom had rubbish a couple of feet high so wasn’t usable at all. The bathroom was filthy throughout. A litter tray was in there which it seemed the cats were still trying to toilet near to, creating a built up carpet of faeces around it.

“The bath appeared to have not been used for quite some time and was black and brown with dirt. The toilet, I suspect, did not flush. The smell was dreadful.”

It was explained to Stirk that the animals would need to be removed from the address because of the poor living conditions and they would stay in RSPCA care if a vet agreed their needs were not being met.

A vet who subsequently examined them and viewed a video and images from the house agreed, and said the animals were suffering or likely to suffer if their circumstances didn’t change.

The court was told Stirk had previously been warned by the RSPCA when conditions had initially started to deteriorate. A follow up visit showed the situation had improved and Stirk told officers she was hiring cleaners to assist her with the property. But the animal welfare charity were contacted again with concerns the situation had worsened.

A fresh start

All of the animals were signed over into the care of the RSPCA by Stirk. The cats, Charlie and Maddie, made a good recovery and were rehomed by the RSPCA’s Coventry & District Branch. Mabel the Doberman and Anya the Borzoi were looked after at the charity’s Felledge Animal Centre near Chester-le-Street, where Anya needed extensive rehabilitation. 

Deputy Centre Manager, Luka Atkinson, said: “Apart from needing a little bit of basic training Mabel was a very easy-going dog. We rehomed her quickly and she quickly settled with her lovely new family. 

“Anya was much more challenging and required lots of rehabilitation as she struggled with everyday life. She was very shut down when she arrived with us and had clearly struggled with the environment she’d been living in. Our team spent months building up her confidence so she was comfortable being handled, going on walks and meeting other dogs. 

“It took a long time to see progress but with the help of clinical behaviourists and some specialist medication we got there. We’re over the moon at how far Anya has come. She has a wonderful new home lined up with a male Borzoi who she’s already met on a number of occasions and the two of them are great company for one another.

“We know she’s going to have a fabulous life and will continue to go from strength to strength.”  

In mitigation the court heard that Stirk was suffering from mental health issues and wanted to get help. Magistrates said their aim was to get her support so she could lead a better quality of life and they emphasised they wanted her to be signposted to services who could assist her.