Animal charity manager denies 11 pet welfare charges

Animal charity manager Stuart Ford has denied 11 animal welfare charges.

Ford, 52, of 83 Castle Hill Gardens, pleaded not guilty at North Devon Magistrates' Court on Friday.

The matters were adjourned until April 5 for a case management hearing.

Ford, manager of the animal rescue SPRA charity in Torrington, is accused of using a stick to strike the sides of pens in which dogs were kept; penning dogs in cages for extensive periods; suspending a West Highland Terrier off the ground with a leash; jabbing dogs with a stick while they were confined and using a makeshift pulley system within a shed housing dogs to silence them.

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He also faces charges of using a check collar to forcibly yank a Border terrier by its neck, not providing a suitable environment in that he caged a cat on top of a dog cage, forcibly using a check chain to discipline a Dalmation and striking it with his hand, forcibly dragging a West Highland Terrier from a grooming table by its neck, failing to ensure the welfare of a cat that was found dead and hanging by its leg within a cage and failing to provide a suitable environment for cats and dogs in that they were kept in a garden shed with inadequate natural lighting and ventilation.