Pregnant woman avoids jail after starving dogs

File photo / Greg Bowker

A heavily pregnant woman has narrowly escaped a prison sentence after leaving her pet dogs to starve to death.

Sheryl Santos Teriaki, 19, was sentenced to two months' home detention and 100 hours' community work for ill-treating animals and failing to prevent suffering when she appeared in Oamaru District Court yesterday.

Teriaki is six months pregnant, The Timaru Herald reported.

"That fact alone has saved you by the narrowest margin from a sentence of imprisonment," Judge Paul Kellar said.

The veterinarian who dealt with the case said it was the worst case of animal neglect she had seen in her 19 years in the job, the court was told.

Police and the SPCA were called to Teriaki's Southland address in early June following complaints from neighbours.

They found at least nine dogs of different ages and breeds in such poor condition that some were barely able to move.

Teriaki said she had arrived home from visiting Oamaru to find her partner, who was meant to be caring for the dogs, had left.

She found a dead puppy and buried it before returning to Gore to look for her partner.

Police also discovered a small sleepout where five small puppies were housed. It was littered with faeces and urine and had no food or water available.

An autopsy on the dead puppy showed it had died of starvation and hypothermia. A second puppy found dead at the address was found to have died of the same causes.

- NZPA