Sutton man banned from keeping pets after birds found dead

Mansfield Magistrates’ Court heard how concerns were raised about Godfrey Cilia, of Grange Farm Close, Sutton, having a number of birds at his property which were not adequately cared for.

The RSPCA were alerted and on June 7, they attended his house but there appeared to be no-one in the property.

Canary birds could be seen in a cage in the window which, due to the size of the bowls, were unable to access the "tiny amounts of water in them".

After getting no response following a number of visits, the RSPCA attended the property with police who were able to gain access.

Inside they found a number of dead birds while others were in poor condition as they had been unable to access food or water.

Inspector Rachel Leafe, who attended the scene, said: “In the kitchen there was a bird cage on the floor with a dead canary inside - there was no food and water in the cage.

“Then nearby there was a damaged fish tank on the kitchen worktop with a dead canary floating on top and in the kitchen there was another cage with a collapsed diamond dove inside. The bird was taken for specialist treatment but did not recover.

“The other birds found at the property were in poor condition as they were unable to get food and water. They were signed over into our care and were taken to the Derby branch of the RSPCA for re-homing.

“This case really highlights how caged birds have complex needs and thorough research needs to be done before taken on these kind of animals as pets.”

Cilia was also given a 12-month community order and was ordered to pay £500 costs and a £85 victim surcharge at the hearing on January 25.

In mitigation, the court heard that the incidents were caused by an error of judgement.