Dog owner ‘may face jail term’ over neglect that led to animal having leg amputated

A man who blamed his dog for having to have one of its legs amputated has been warned by a judge he may be facing a jail sentence.

The judge heard the animal’s leg was so badly damaged from being entangled in a chain that it lost all skin and flesh and all that was left was bone.

Husband and wife JJ and Katriona Breen of Meentyflugh, Kiskeam, Co Cork, had both pleaded guilty to five breaches of the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 when they appeared at a Mallow District Court sitting in Fermoy on Monday.

NSPCA animal welfare inspector Caroline Faherty told the court that she called to the Breens’ property with Cork County Council dog warden John Manning on July 4th, 2025, on foot of a welfare complaint but there was no one at home when they arrived.

They heard barking from behind the house where they found two Border Collies, one with a chain about her neck. The chain was tied to a metal bar and had shortened so much after getting knotted, the dog could not reach a water bowl while a mud-caked muzzle would have prevented her drinking if she had been able to reach the bowl, the court heard.

“The main issue for the dog, who was called Peggy, was her paw on her left hind leg – it was completely degloved – that’s to say, all the skin and fat below it had been removed – all the skin and flesh were gone so that her paw was down to her toe bones,” said Faherty.

She said she decided to remove the dog and brought the dog to a Millstreet veterinary practice where vet Mairead Wallace Bennett removed the muzzle and put on a collar to prevent the dog going at her injured leg and gave the dog antibiotics.

Faherty said that when she spoke to vet Owen Browne at Millstreet on Monday July 7^th, she was told the dog was undergoing surgery to have her leg removed as amputation was the only option since she was missing part of her paw.

Katrina Breen contacted her and said they had got two Border Collies but they went wandering so they chained them up one at a time, on alternate days, to stop them wandering and that the dog’s leg had got caught up in the chain on the previous weekend and her husband had freed it.

Katrina Breen said the dog would not leave a bandage on the wound but her husband had put a wound spray on the leg and given the dog four injections. They had not taken the dog to the vet as they were both busy working though they had consulted with the vet about the animal, she said.

Katrina Breen said the vet had advised putting a muzzle on the dog to prevent it going at her leg, but Faherty said when she rang the vet to speak with him, his secretary checked with him and told her the vet had never treated the dog.

Faherty said she met JJ Breen and asked him why he had not brought the dog to a vet and that he said he had been working but had planned to bring her to the vet the next day. He became angry and said as far as he was concerned, the dog, not him, was to blame for the injury to her leg, she said.

Faherty said Wallace Bennett had told her it was the worst case of neglect she had seen in a dog in her 40 years as a vet, but the dog was now doing well with her new family in Donegal.

Prosecution barrister Meg Burke said penalties on summary conviction included fines of up to €5,000 or six months in jail or both on each charge while she was also seeking costs that amounted to €1,110.29 in veterinary bills as well as kennelling costs of €1,000.

Defence solicitor David O’Meara said his clients had pleaded guilty and in light of the fact they had no previous convictions, the court might benefit from a probation report. Judge Colm Roberts agreed and adjourned the case until January 26^th for finalisation

But the judge warned JJ Breen that he was looking at a custodial sentence for such extraordinary cruelty and neglect, and he advised him to recognise his neglect of the dog was unacceptable and to express remorse rather than blaming the animal for the loss of her leg.