HORRIFIC photos show the inside of an ex-GP’s home as dogs and cats were found living amongst faeces and urine in her rubbish-strewn house.
Nicola Stirk has been banned from owning after ignoring warnings about the squalid state of her property in County Durham.
RSPCA officers swooped into the cruel woman’s home after concerns were raised and were confronted by scenes one inspector described as “dreadful”.
Inside the home officers discovered a Doberman, a Borzoi and two cats who were living among faeces, urine and piles of rubbish.
At Teesside Magistrates’ Court, Stirk admitted failing to meet the animals’ needs and provide them with a suitable environment.
She was banned from keeping cats and for two years and handed a 15-month community order.
RSPCA Inspector Rowena Proctor visited the property on February 3 after the received a tip-off about the conditions.
In a statement to the court, she said: “Upon entering the front door, the passageway was littered with faeces and rubbish.
“The sofa had been chewed by the dogs to the point it was unusable.
“The floors throughout, bar one small area in the living room, were completely covered in rubbish, faeces and urine.
“The pathway through to the kitchen and the kitchen itself was the same – faeces in almost every single place you could look and every surface and area was just filthy.
“The dogs lived downstairs with a baby gate to prevent them going upstairs and the cats, I was informed, lived upstairs.
“The spare bedroom had rubbish a couple of feet high so wasn’t usable at all. The bathroom was filthy throughout.
“A litter tray was in there which it seemed the cats were still trying to toilet near to, creating a built-up carpet of faeces around it.
“The bath appeared to have not been used for quite some time and was black and brown with dirt.
“The toilet, I suspect, did not flush. The smell was dreadful.”
The court heard Stirk had previously been warned by the RSPCA when conditions first began to deteriorate.
Although a follow-up visit showed improvements and she told officers she was hiring cleaners, the charity was later contacted again amid fears the situation had worsened.
The animals were removed and signed over into the care of the RSPCA.
Cats Maddy and Charlie recovered after being cared for at the RSPCA’s Coventry & District Branch animal centre before being rehomed.
Mabel the Doberman and Anya the Borzoi were taken to the charity’s Felledge Animal Centre near Chester-le-Street, where staff spent months helping Anya overcome the effects of her ordeal.
Deputy Centre Manager Luka Atkinson said: “Apart from needing a little bit of basic training Mabel was a very easy-going dog.
“We rehomed her quickly and she quickly settled with her lovely new family.
“Anya was much more challenging and required lots of rehabilitation as she struggled with everyday life.
“She was very shut down when she arrived with us and had clearly struggled with the environment she’d been living in.
“We’re over the moon at how far Anya has come.
“She has a wonderful new home lined up with a male Borzoi who she’s already met on a number of occasions and the two of them are great company for one another.
“We know she’s going to have a fabulous life and will continue to go from strength to strength.”
Stirk was also ordered to pay £900 in costs and a £114 victim surcharge.
In mitigation, the court heard she was suffering from mental issues and was seeking help.
