30 July 2025

A 34-year-old Port Kennedy woman has been fined $8000 and banned from owning pets for 10 years after leaving her dog and cat unattended at her home for over a week.

In February this year, RSPCA WA received a cruelty report about a dog that had been left unattended for around 36 hours. The address was known to the RSPCA which had received similar reports regarding the same address before.

As a result, in January, the offender had been asked to notify an inspector of the name and contact details of the person organised to look after her animals if she was to go away again. That had not occurred in this instance.

An RSPCA WA inspector attended the property and saw a white cat confined inside the house, seemingly without access to food or water. The inspector lowered food to the two-year-old cat named Flash through a partially opened window. She reported that Flash ate eagerly.

Using a ladder, the inspector entered the back yard was approached by a one-year-old tan and white American Staffy named Adonis. He was in reasonable body condition with the outline of his ribs just visible.

The inspector and other RSPCA staff members continued to return to the property to feed the animals over the following days and saw no evidence the offender had returned.

A warrant was obtained to enter the house with the help of a locksmith and both Flash and Adonis were seized. Both remain in the care of the RSPCA.

The offender told the inspector she had been going to the house to attend to the animals, but she’d been getting in through a window because the door was inexplicably locked. RSPCA WA deemed the explanation implausible.

In sentencing, Magistrate Brian Mahon said, “Flash and Adonis experienced absolutely unnecessarily a situation of neglect. Without intervention over a number of days by the RSPCA, they may not have made it.”

“You enter into pet ownership voluntarily … you accept the responsibility. (The offender) was aware of her situation and overlooked her obligations.”

RSPCA WA Inspector Manager Kylie Green said the sentencing sent a strong message about the responsibilities associated with pet ownership.

“You can’t just walk away and leave your animals without the care they need; owners have an obligation to make sure their pets are properly looked after at all times, in all circumstances.”

In addition to the $8000 in fines, the offender was also ordered to pay $2,536 in in costs and had her ownership of Flash and Adonis forfeited.

The offender was sentenced under sections 19(1) and 19(3)(b)(ii) of the Animal Welfare Act 2002. She was found to have confined Flash and Adonis in a manner likely to cause unnecessary harm.

The maximum penalty for a charge of animal cruelty is a $50,000 fine and five years in prison.

The RSPCA relies on the community to report incidents of suspected cruelty and neglect. Report cruelty 24/7 on 1300 CRUELTY (1300 278 358) or at rspcawa.org.au