Lifetime ban after bulldog euthanised following severe neglect

A 67-year-old woman has been banned from owning animals ever again after dogs in her care were found in such a state of severe neglect that one needed to be euthanased.

Marie Lorraine Tatnell pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to provide for an animal's needs under her duty of care in the Goondiwindi Magistrates Court, about 350 kilometres west of Brisbane.

Queensland Police prosecutor Acting Sergeant Paul Donaldson told the court yesterday, on January 19, Rippa, an Australian bulldog, and Matilda, a blue cattle dog, were recovered from Tatnell's property by Goondiwindi Regional Council officers and a local rescue charity and taken to a veterinarian.

The court heard Rippa was profoundly malnourished and dehydrated, with a body condition score of one out of nine.

Matilda was also severely malnourished, with a body condition score of two out of nine.

Acting Sergeant Donaldson said both dogs were infested with parasites and in need of urgent veterinary treatment.

Rippa could not be saved and was humanely euthanased, while Matilda received treatment and was taken into the care of the RSPCA, the court heard.

Tatnell's lawyer, Clare Hine, told the court the neglect was not intentional and that her client suffered from significant physical and mental health issues.

"She is a lady with an intellectual disability. She also has a number of quite complex physical issues, which really affect her mobility," Ms Hine said.

"She didn't remember when she fed them. She thought she fed them one day, but she hadn't."

'Court can't bring the dog back'

Magistrate Janice Crowley fined Tatnell $1,500, ordered her to pay more than $1,100 in veterinary costs incurred by the Queensland Police Service and imposed a lifetime prohibition on owning animals.

Tatnell did not oppose the prohibition order.

"I would have been making that order anyway," Magistrate Crowley said.

The magistrate said a fine in the circumstances was "barely adequate".

"The court can't bring the dog back,"

she said.

"You're not going to get the opportunity to do anything like this again because you're not going to be permitted to have animals in your care again."

Magistrate Crowley also accepted that the Goondiwindi woman had been subjected to "extra-curial" punishment after her name and address were circulated on social media following the seizure of the dogs.

"You have been targeted in the community by a number of people who no doubt are animal lovers and are very upset by the treatment of those two dogs,"

she said.

About 15 Goondiwindi residents attended court in support of the dogs.

They broke out in applause in the courtroom after the prohibition order was handed down.

Among them was Macintyre Animal Rescue president Carey Emmerton, who helped retrieve the dogs from Tatnell's property.

"I can't tell you how elated I am that a prohibition order was put in place," Ms Emmerton said.

"That's all we wanted.

"We didn't care about fines or anything else like that, we just wanted a prohibition order to say she could not own any more animals ever."

Ms Emmerton said it was the first prohibition order she had seen imposed in her 15 years running the Goondiwindi-based rescue organisation.

"It's a step in the right direction," she said.

While she welcomed the outcome, Ms Emmerton said there were other cases that never reached court.

"This is the first one that we've actually been able to take this far and get a result," she said.

"But there are absolutely hundreds out here."

A spokesperson from the RSPCA said Matilda had since been adopted into a "loving and caring" home.