A woman in New Zealand has been sentenced to two months in prison for overfeeding her dog, leading to its weight reaching approximately 54 kilograms and eventually dying unexpectedly due to health issues. The woman was convicted of “improper care” by the court.
The New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) announced in a statement on July 24th that the dog, named Nuggi, was originally owned by a woman in Auckland.
In October 2021, police executed a search warrant at the woman’s residence and found several dogs, including Nuggi. At that time, Nuggi weighed a staggering 53.7 kilograms, making it almost impossible for its legs to support its weight.
Animal control officers mentioned that when Nuggi had to be taken to the animal shelter, it had to stop three times just to catch its breath while walking a mere 10 meters to the vehicle.
On that day, a veterinarian conducted a physical examination on Nuggi but couldn’t even hear its heartbeat with a stethoscope due to the excessive fat. Nuggi had excessively long nails with multiple skin tags, especially in areas where it made contact with the ground such as the abdomen and elbows. It also suffered from conjunctivitis.
SPCA CEO Todd Westwood stated that Nuggi’s condition shocked their staff as they usually deal with underweight animals. He described Nuggi as one of the most obese animals they had encountered, almost unable to walk and clearly in pain due to the excessive weight it had to bear.
He added, “It is unfortunate that we see animals with issues of underweight, hunger, or malnutrition every day, but witnessing an animal so severely overfed is equally heartbreaking.”
Nuggi’s owner told SPCA that she fed the dog 8 to 10 pieces of chicken daily along with some dog biscuits. She claimed to take Nuggi for walks to exercise or let it play outside.
Westwood emphasized, “As a responsible dog owner, you must provide your pet with proper diet and daily exercise, which clearly was not the case here. Nuggi was severely overfed, and its owner did not seek help or change their behavior but continued to overfeed until it could barely walk. This is unacceptable.”
Despite SPCA’s efforts to treat Nuggi for about two months, resulting in an initial weight loss of 8.9 kilograms, equivalent to 16.5% of its body weight, Nuggi tragically died suddenly due to a ruptured liver tumor causing acute bleeding. The autopsy revealed more complications, including liver disease and Cushing’s disease.
In addition to the two-month imprisonment, Nuggi’s owner was fined 1,222.15 New Zealand dollars (approximately 725 US dollars) and prohibited from owning any pets for a year.