A woman has failed to overturn an application made to rehome two puppies belonging to her.

A judge ruled at Enniskillen Magistrates Court on Monday that he was satisfied the risk of harm to the dogs was at such a level that making an order was required.

Joy Parke, of Moybane Road, Enniskillen, was fighting the order, which was made following several occasions when concerns for the dogs – named Jonas and Jude – were reported by members of the public.

Evidence was heard from four police officers, who attended the dogs in Parke’s car on numerous occasions.

Each officer described the car as having dog faeces and urine covering the back seat, while there was also a smell from the car which one officer described as “overwhelming”.

A dog warden from Fermanagh and Omagh District Council who saw the dogs when they were brought to the warden service by police told the court he had concerns about the body weight of Jude, which he believed was underweight.

A vet who completed a report on the dogs told the court that the puppies would have suffered psychologically, based on the conditions they were left in in the car.

One police constable was called out to a hotel where Parke was staying, and had left the dogs in the car.

He told the court when asked to let the dogs out for food and water, Parke declined, and when it was put to him that the windows were down in the car and there was food and water, he said the windows were fully up, and he could not see any food or water.

On the second date he came across the dogs, Parke had been arrested, and he had to move the car to the police station.

He said the smell was overwhelming, and there was dog excrement in the car and on the dog, and a smell of urine.

He said the dogs looked undernourished, and when they were let out they drank water for some time.

Another constable who had stopped Parke said it was “quite clear to see” the back seat of the car was covered in faeces and urine, and the smell was “unbearable”. He said it was physically not possible to sit in the car due to the smell.

When put to him by Parke’s barrister, Éamann Donnelly, that this was not the case, he said the rear seat was covered in faeces.

Evidence

A third police officer gave evidence that she became aware of one of the dogs after a member of the public reported it had been left in a car close to Enniskillen Castle, and was in distress.

They said the window was open 2-3cm, but there was no food and water. She said the dog appeared to be hiding from the sun under one of the seats, and also said there were dog faeces and urine in the car.

Again, on a different occasion, another officer gave evidence that they responded to a report from a member of the public about the concerns for dogs in a car at Belmore Street, Enniskillen.

They said the dogs had been in the car for well over two hours and were lethargic and panting, and did not appear to have access to food or water.

He said they were desperate to get out of the car, and appeared underweight.

Two other dog wardens who gave evidence also said the dogs appeared underweight.

In her evidence to the court, Parke said she fed the dogs twice a day, at 9am and 6pm, and they had water all the time. 

She said on the occasions where she left the dogs in the car, it was only for short trips, and for 20 minutes or so, and the only time she left them unattended for a longer period was when she stayed at the hotel.

Parke said there was always food and water left in the car, and the windows were open.

The defendant did not agree with the evidence from the officers about the condition of the car, and said she had it valeted once a month as they spend so much time in it, and if it was in the condition they said it was in, she would not have travelled in it.

Parke said she had no idea why four different officers said this in their evidence.
Concerning the dogs being underweight, Parke denied this, and said Jude, the younger pup, was more finely built.

However, the prosecution pointed out that when the pups were in the care of the council, they put on 3.5kg and 2.5kg in weight respectively, and asked were they not fed properly beforehand, to which Parke replied: “I always fed them properly.”

When it was suggested that she was not caring for them, and the pups were at risk of harm, Parke said it was “nonsense”, and “rubbish”, and added: “I love my dogs.”

In their submission, the prosecution said there was clear evidence from the police of the condition of the dogs over some time.

Mr. Donnelly said that nobody had checked the home environment of the dogs, which was a suitable environment for them, and that Parke also denied the condition of the car.
He also said nobody checked how they were fed at home, and added that Parke was capable of looking after the dogs.

However, Deputy District Judge Trevor Browne ruled against Parke, saying the evidence gave a snapshot of the daily lives lived by the dogs out of the house – and evidence which dealt with the dogs’ thirst and the overwhelming smell and excrement in the car.

He said he was satisfied well beyond the balance of probability, and there was a significant risk of harm, such that he granted the rehoming order.

Parke was also ordered to pay £150 in legal fees.