A 32-year-old North Bay man has been found guilty of four counts of animal cruelty under the Ontario SPCA Act and has been banned from owning animals for 10 years as a result of an investigation into the treatment of a dog in his care.
On August 2, 2016, an Ontario SPCA agent went to a home in North Bay after receiving a complaint about the welfare of a dog.
The officer saw a Great Dane type of dog with a large mass on his forehead, causing the dog's right eye to protrude. Orders were issued under the Ontario SPCA Act to have the dog examined by a veterinarian.
The dog was subsequently removed after the man failed to comply with the Order and tried to hide the animal at a different location.
The dog was found and immediately taken to a veterinarian where an examination revealed the mass on the dog’s head was a large cyst that had damaged his eye. The dog’s eye was removed at the recommendation of the veterinarian.
The animal was also found to be suffering from a sinus infection, which was treated. The dog has since been re-homed.
On May 3, Brian Fields, 32, was found guilty of four counts of animal cruelty in a North Bay Provincial Offences Court according to a news release from the OSPCA.
Fields was found guilty of:
- Permitting distress to an animal
- Failure to provide adequate and appropriate medical attention
- Failure to comply with an Ontario SPCA Order
- Obstruction
Fields was sentenced to a 10-year prohibition on owning animals and is required to pay $4,105 in restitution costs to the North Bay and District Humane Society. He is also subject to inspections by an Ontario SPCA officer for two years and received two years of probation.
