Officer described 'smell of death' in home where dogs and rabbits perished

An RSPCA officer described a “strong smell of death" at the home of a couple from County Durham where six dogs and three rabbits were found dead.  

Five of the six dogs had perished in filthy crates in a bedroom of the property at Ferryhill, while a sixth canine had chewed her way out of a cage before dying in the living room.

A further 29 live animals, including dogs, ferrets, birds, snakes and other reptiles, were rescued by the RSPCA after being found in poor conditions at another property in connection with the case. 

At a sentencing hearing at Durham Crown Court on Friday 31 July, Nathan Race (DoB 8/1/1994) and Jade Race (DoB 21/9/1997) were given lifetime bans on keeping all animals following an investigation and prosecution by the RSPCA.

The couple had pleaded guilty to several Animal Welfare Act offences at a previous hearing.

The court heard that RSPCA Inspector Clare Wilson went to Ford Terrace in Chilton, Ferryhill, on 16 September last year in response to a call the charity had received about dead animals in cages at the address. 

The officer described seeing thousands of flies covering an entire upstairs window and what looked like a deceased dog lying in the living room behind the kitchen door.

After liaising with the property's landlord and making enquiries with people nearby, the police were called. Nathan Race then arrived on the scene but declined to accompany officers inside the house.

In her written statement to the court, Inspector Wilson said: “I went inside with the police officers; the house was extremely messy and dirty. There was a strong smell of death and faeces, and flies were buzzing around everywhere. 

“I looked round the property first and saw six dead dogs. One was loose behind the kitchen door, and the rest were in crates in the upstairs front bedroom. 

“I also saw three dead rabbits in indoor plastic hutches in the same bedroom and the kitchen. I didn’t see any food or water in any of the enclosures; some had empty, dry and upturned bowls. The water bottles attached to the rabbit hutches were also empty and dry. 

“There were faeces all over the floor in the living area and spilling out of the crates, and thick layers of faeces in the rabbit enclosures, especially the hutch at the end of the kitchen. The dead rabbit was lying on a thick, mouldy layer of droppings.

“There was lots of rubbish everywhere and empty food tins and bags on the surfaces and floors and all over the bed. I saw that the toilet water was low and dirty.”

The court heard the dogs appeared to have died at different times. Two Pomeranians called Coco and Rolo were found deceased together in a crate, but it was evident from their decomposed bodies that one had perished first. 

There was evidence that an Akita-type dog called Mila, who was found in the living room, had chewed her way out of a cage and could have been drinking water from the toilet, as she had access to upstairs. She is thought to have been the last dog to die. 

The bodies of the rabbits were lying in filthy cages with thick, mouldy faeces and no food, water or bedding. The court was told it was believed they had also passed away more recently.

Some of the other remains, including two Dachshunds named Pudding and Rusty, and a Shih Tzu called Tyson, were mummified. 

Nathan Race told the RSPCA Inspector he also had dogs at another house in Poplar Terrace, West Cornforth, where the couple lived, and the officer travelled there immediately to look at them.

Once inside the property, Inspector Wilson found 29 animals. They included six budgies, three cockatiels, two parakeets and a parrot living in dirty cages with filthy water. Some of the birds had broken tail feathers.

In a bedroom were five vivariums housing a royal python, a corn snake, a hognose snake, a bearded dragon and a leopard gecko. Some sort of heat source had been provided, but none of the reptiles had any lighting.  Another upstairs room contained nine ferrets - two of whom were running loose - in dirty, barren cages with no enrichment or water. 

A further room had three rabbit enclosures, where Inspector Wilson found Midnight, an emaciated nine-month-old black and white female lop. She was alive, but her spine, shoulder blades, ribs and pelvic bones were described as  “spiky” to the touch, and there was no food, water or remnants of any hay in her small enclosure.

Nathan Race claimed the other two rabbits had died after having seizures.

Two dogs, a ten-month-old black female Cockapoo called Nova, and Oreo, a grey female Cavapoo of the same age, were also seen by the inspector. 

Nathan Race agreed to sign over all the animals into the care of the RSPCA, and they were taken to a local veterinary practice. Sadly, one of the budgies showed signs of regurgitation and died overnight.  

In her written statement to the court, the vet said none of the surviving animals had had their needs met to the extent required by good practice.

She said the deceased dogs and rabbits had suffered unnecessarily because of a lack of food and water, and this had been ongoing for at least three days before their death.

“Nine animals died in a fairly short space of time. No action was taken to minimise their suffering and to prevent their death. The cause of death was neglect, with no water or food being available.

“They were not provided with sufficient resources for their basic needs such as water,
adequate food, space, beds or toys. The environment was filthy. Any reasonable and humane person would have recognised these problems and addressed them,” said the vet.

The couple were interviewed by the RSPCA about what had happened.

Nathan Race said he’d owned most of the animals, apart from the ferrets, for between three and six months. 

He said he saw nothing visibly wrong with his pets, although a couple were “underweight”, but he couldn't remember which ones.

He stated he couldn't say when the first animal had died, but claimed he was still giving them food and water, which they were refusing.     

Jade Race said her husband told her that all the animals at Ford Terrace were “fine” as she was unable to look after them herself.

When asked by the RSPCA Inspector what they thought animals needed to be given by their owners, the couple replied “attention, food, water, love.” 

Nova, Oreo and Midnight went on to make a full recovery and were cared for by the RSPCA’s Great Animal Animal Centre before being adopted. 

The rescued exotic animals were rehomed by the charity to specialist facilities, and the birds were transferred to Lincolnshire Wildlife Park and Jax’s Ark, also Lincolnshire-based.   

As well as the lifetime ban on keeping all animals, Nathan Race, of Poplar Terrace, West Cornforth, was also given a 20-month prison sentence, suspended for 24 months, and ordered to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work and a 30-day rehabilitation activity requirement.

Jade Race, of Coronation Terrace, West Cornforth, who also received a lifetime ban on keeping all animals, was handed a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for 24 months, and ordered to carry out a 40-day rehabilitation activity requirement.

In mitigation, the court was told Jade was suffering from mobility issues and was unable to attend the Ford Terrace address, and Nathan was depressed and let the situation get on top of him.

Speaking after sentencing, Inspector Wilson said: “This was an extremely shocking and sad case to investigate, and I am so relieved that the owners of these animals can never legally own another one again.

“I would urge anyone thinking of taking on large numbers of animals to think carefully about the care requirements and long-term financial commitments that are required to properly care for any animal within animal welfare laws."

Guidance can always be found on the RSPCA website and in DEFRA Codes of Practice for pet owners. Thankfully the animals removed from this couple have gone on to find their forever homes now.