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A woman from Blackpool who failed to meet the most basic needs of her four dogs has been banned from keeping animals for life.

Kirsty Dunne, 39, of Grasmere Road, Blackpool pleaded guilty to four animal welfare offences following a prosecution brought by the RSPCA.

She was sentenced at Blackpool Magistrates Court on Friday, June 16 where she was handed 12 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 12 months.

Dunne was also ordered to complete 15 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days and pay £400 costs plus a £154 victim surcharge.

The dogs were all underweight with their hip bones and ribs protruding. They had matted fur and were covered in fleas

You can read our full court report on Kirsty Dunne here.

Today (Thursday, June 29), the RSPCA released new pictures showing the emaciated condition of her starving dogs Apollo, Luna, Charli and Tilly.

RSPCA inspector Amy McIntosh attended Dunne’s former home in Bloomfield Road last October after the charity’s emergency line received a complaint about the condition of her dogs from a concerned member of the public.

The RSPCA inspector discovered the four Saluki cross lurchers in a dark room at Dunne’s house with the floor covered in dog faeces.

All of the dogs have since been rehomed by the RSPCA and are enjoying happy and healthy lives with their new owners

Apollo, Luna and Charli were 18 months old at the time and Tilly was three years old. The youngsters were all underweight with their hip bones protruding and all the ribs and spinal processes visible; and they had very little fat covering.

Luna had matted fur around her rib cage and Tilly looked subdued and quiet. All of the dogs were covered in fleas and flea dirt.

Dunne agreed to sign the dogs over to the RSPCA and they were examined by a vet who ran blood tests to rule out any underlying metabolic diseases.

Results were normal meaning that the dogs had not reached their ideal weight due to a poor and insufficient diet.

In his witness statement, an expert vet stated that in his opinion the dogs suffered for many weeks as their nutritional needs were not met.

"The most shameful and shocking case of its kind we have come across”

They were underfed so they were constantly feeling hungry and became physically weaker. Their suffering could have been easily prevented by feeding them the adequate amount of food.

The dogs were treated with anti-parasitic drugs to eliminate their fleas and recovered in foster care at the RSPCA’s Westmorland Branch in Kendal.

At Blackpool Magistrates’ Court, Dune expressed remorse and regret for neglecting her dogs and allowing them to suffer.

The court was so shocked by the cruelty case that Magistrates stated they had never seen such a shameful and serious case of neglect.

They heard that despite paying for a care package with a veterinary practice to access services, Dunne allowed all four of her dogs to become emaciated and each had serious fleas.

All of the dogs have since been rehomed by the RSPCA and are said to be enjoying happy and healthy lives with their new owners.

Lifetime ban for Blackpool woman whose dogs were found emaciated

You can read our full court report on Kirsty Dunne here.

"The most shameful and shocking case of its kind we have come across”