Mum and two daughters made £125k running ‘atrocious’ puppy farm keeping ‘malnourished’ dogs in horrific conditions
A MUM and her two daughters raked in £125,000 by flogging dozens of dogs from their squalid illegal puppy farm.
Julie Pearce 57, and daughters Rosalie Pearce, 33, and Kaylie Adams, 24, sold the animals online during lockdown.
They kept the dogs in “atrocious” conditions while being “motivated by greed” to plug the demand for pandemic pets.
Dozens of animals were left in cramped rooms covered in faeces and urine, with some pregnant or feeding young puppies at the time.
Many of the dogs were infested with fleas and malnourished and needed to be completely clipped as their fur was so matted.
Julie Pearce and her two daughters have pleaded guilty to running an unlicensed dog breeding business and engaging in unfair commercial practices.
Rosalie Pearce and Kaylie Adams also admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal and failing to meet their welfare needs.
The trio all avoided jail and were instead handed suspended prison sentences and banned from keeping animals for the next ten years.
Cardiff Crown Court heard Julie Pearce started the business but left her daughters to run it when she moved to Gran Canaria.
They made around £125,000 selling the dogs on sites such as Gumtree.
In one ad, a Shih Tzu-cross puppy was described as being “raised in our busy family home” and whose mother was their “loved family pet”.
The owner spent £2,000 on the dog unaware it had actually been raised in “appalling” conditions.
Thankfully the dogs rescued were taken in by charity Hope Rescue and now have all been rehomed.
Operations manager Sara Rosser, said: “It was shocking to see so many dogs living in such awful conditions.
“The majority needed to be completely clipped off by our staff at the centre because their coats were so matted in faeces and urine and many were covered in fleas.
“Some of the dogs were also pregnant or feeding young puppies and needed additional care.
“After living such sheltered lives many of the dogs also needed extra support in learning about normal dog things such as walking on a lead, travelling in a car and house training.
“We are pleased to say that all of the dogs have now gone on to find wonderful homes where they have become much loved family members and able to live the lives they deserve.”