Edinburgh woman who starved dog to death after leaving pets alone for 10 days banned from owning animals

Liza Telfer, 39, from Edinburgh, was sentenced at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Thursday after abandoning three Old English Bulldog type dogs in a property on their own without adequate food or water for at least ten days.

One of the animals, named Bonnie, suffered organ failure and starved to death.

Harrowing details of how the distressed animals were treated were heard at court where Telfer pleaded guilty to three charges of animal cruelty.

Fiscal depute Zoe Nugent told the court Scottish SPCA officials were alerted by a neighbour to the three dogs having been left alone in the property at Saughton Mains in Edinburgh in November 2023.

The animal charity inspectors attended on several occasions, but did not receive an answer and left calling cards for Telfer to contact them.

The inspectors were eventually allowed entry to the home and found smashed windows. The inside of the property was described as having “appalling conditions” and suffering from “a foul smell”, the court was told.

Ms Nugent said one female tan and white dog was found dead and a subsequent autopsy revealed the animal had suffered organ failure and starved to death.

The fiscal said: “There was broken furniture, rubbish and furniture piled high on the floor space. Several doors had been chewed by the dogs and the door handles had been chewed off.

”The court was told there was dog faeces strewn around the property, no electricity within the home and the inspectors had found a dead rat in the toilet.”

Telfer initially refused to tell the charity officials where the two other dogs had been taken, but when they were eventually located it was found they were both “extremely underweight” due to “a lack of nutrition”.

Lawyer Murray Robertson, defending, said: “It is a serious offence and she is regretful one of the dogs ended up dying.”

Scottish SPCA inspector June Chalcroft said of the November 2023 incident: “We visited the property and observed squalid, uninhabitable conditions through the letterbox. A faint dog bark could be heard from inside, but the dog itself was not visible.”

Ms Chalcroft added: “Given the situation, we contacted Police Scotland, as the dogs inside the property might require urgent veterinary care. A dog, named Bonnie, was brought outside from within the property covered in a blue blanket. She was emaciated and her skeletal bones were easily seen. She was dead.

“Telfer’s son ran off with the other two dogs, a tri-coloured Bulldog named Yogi, who was very thin, and a chocolate and caramel Bulldog named Lady, who appeared extremely thin. They were handed over a few days later.

“The post-mortem evidence showed that Bonnie most likely died of organ failure associated with the severely malnourished state. The failure to seek veterinary attention will have resulted in stress and unnecessary suffering to Bonnie when she was alive.”

Sheriff Cook placed Telfer, now of Drylaw, Edinburgh, under the supervision of the social work department for 18 months and banned her from owning or keeping animals for the rest of her life.

Ms Chalcroft said: “We are pleased that Telfer received a ban from owning any animals for life. The horrific conditions and the pain and suffering caused to these three dogs deserved a ban. To hear Bonnie's last cries and have her handed over dead was extremely upsetting.”