A PET owner has been banned from keeping animals for 15 years after a dog in her care was so severely emaciated it lost more than half its body weight.

An RSPCA inspector visited the home of Leslie-Anne Rhoden in January this year following a call from a concerned member of the public.

In the backyard of the house in Ivy Grove, Hartlepool, the inspector found two dogs, both Collie cross breeds, surrounded by rubbish and excrement.

Both animals were severely under-weight, with one dog so badly malnourished that all its bones were showing and it could barely walk.

After the dog was taken into care it was found to weigh just 7.9 kilos - ten to 11 kilos below its natural body weight.

Despite this, inspectors discovered unopened pet food in cupboards in the house.

Rhoden pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to both animals, one of which was a family pet and the other she said she had taken in as a stray a month earlier.

At Hartlepool Magistrates' Court yesterday, the 20-year-old was told she would not be allowed to own any type of pet for the next 15 years.

She was also fined £250 and given a 12-month community rehabilitation order.

Neil Taylor, prosecuting, told the court that blood samples taken after the incident were consistent with starvation.

He said: "It is prolonged starvation here. We are not talking short-term. I've carried out many animal cruelty cases over the years, but this is the first time I've heard of a vet insisting the animals be taken away before the police arrived because she feared so much for their safety."

Speaking after the court case, Rhoden insisted that she had tried to feed both animals, but they had not wanted to eat.

She said: "I didn't intend to hurt them. I was going through bad problems with myself. I should have done more to help them."