'Suffering' dog put down after fur became so matted that its blood supply was cut off

dailystar.co.uk:

dog that “suffered unnecessarily for months” had to be put down because the blood supply to her leg was cut off due to the state she was kept in by her owner.Terrier Trixie’s coat had become so matted that it had actually cut off the blood supply to her lower leg and caused skin on her foot to turn black.Her condition was so bad that part of her skin had been ‘cheese wired’ by bands of hair and matting which had cut into the flesh, causing what RSPCA Cymru called “irreparable damage to her foot”.The dog’s coat was also so severely matted in places that she could not see properly.The neglect came to light when Trixie’s owner, 72-year-old Linda Jones from Gwelfor in Llanelli, took Trixie to veterinary charity the PDSA in Swansea in January.Trixie was put to sleep on welfare grounds and Jones took her pet’s body away.However, photos and medical notes of the dog’s suffering were available and the RSPCA was contacted.Inspector Keith Hogben visited Jones at her Llanelli home on January 11 - a week after Trixie was put down - to ask about the circumstances which led to the dog’s death.Jones denied an allegation of neglect and said there had been nothing wrong with her pet.To stay up to date with all the latest news, make sure you sign up to one of our newsletters here.“I explained that a vet had said she had been euthanised due to her severely matted coat and an infected injury to her foot," he said.Two days later, Jones again reiterated to the RSPCA that Trixie had not been neglected.

She claimed the dog’s paw had been bad for only two weeks and that her intention was to get her coat dealt with once her foot had been treated and healed.However, the vet who examined Trixie for the PDSA said she was found to be non-weight.