Bradford farmer sentenced for cockfighting offences
- Published
A total of 22 birds were discovered with various injuries
A farmer from Bradford who staged cockfights has been sentenced for a string of animal cruelty offences.
Douglas Price, 39, was arrested after the RSPCA found hens and cockerels on his land with fighting injuries, feather loss and without food or water.
At Bradford Crown Court, he was found guilty of charges including causing unnecessary suffering to animals.
He was sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for 18 months, and banned from keeping the animals.
An RSPCA spokesman said: "The person responsible for these birds has an unhealthy interest in cockfighting."
Officers from West Yorkshire Police and the animal charity found 22 birds in total on the farm in makeshift pens.
They also seized footage from Price's phone that indicated he was keeping and training the birds to fight.
Injuries included feathers missing from the cockerels' chests, malnourishment and damaged legs.
It also appeared that some of the cockerels' combs were missing, according to the RSPCA.
A vet found that a total of 14 hens and cockerels were in a state of neglect and some had been caused unnecessary suffering.
One dead cockerel was found at the farm and three birds were subsequently destroyed on the advice of the vet.
The injuries were consistent with cockfighting, the RSPCA said
Ian Muttitt, chief inspector for the RSPCA's special operations unit, said: "I have investigated cockfighting offences for a number of years and reviewed hours of footage relating to this crime and it was very clear to me that several sequences of the footage obtained from Price's mobile phone depicted cockfight sparring sessions."
Price was sentenced on 8 September after being found guilty of two counts of causing unnecessary suffering to protected animals, one count of failing to ensure the needs of animals were met and one count of keeping or training animals for use in connection with an animal fight.
He was also sentenced to 20 rehabilitation activity days, 100 hours of unpaid work and ordered to pay a £156 victim surcharge and £400 in costs.
Price was also disqualified from keeping hens and cockerels for 12 months, the RSPCA said.
The surviving birds were taken into the RSPCA's care and were subsequently rehomed.
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