SHIELDS GAZETTE (UK) 11 December 10 Reptile man's sanctuary of suffering
A man who set up a sanctuary for unwanted reptiles in his South Tyneside home has been banned from keeping them for two years after admitting causing them unnecessary suffering.
Mark Newton, 35, of Seton Walk, South Shields, pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to 16 reptiles at his home in Seton Walk, South Shields, between November 16 and December 16 last year.
Solicitor Judith Curry, for the RSPCA, said the reptiles identified in the substantive charge were four bearded dragons, four corn snakes, three yellow-bellied turtles, two river cootie turtles, a soft-shell turtle, a leopard gecko and a green iguana.
She said the charity was alerted when concerns were raised about Newton – who set up the Slithering Serpents website to help find homes for reptiles – having the creatures at his home and and an RSPCA inspector, along with a environmental health officer and two Pcs went to his address.
Jacqui Pattinson, a vet who is an expert on exotic reptiles, was called in to examine the animals and to check out how they were being kept.
She discovered that the 16 reptiles were being kept in different rooms and in an airing cupboard at temperatures that were too low and life-threatening.
Some had no light, others had no water and some had no basking areas or hides.
The leopard gecko was kept in an open-topped tank and was emaciated, with several toes missing. Some reptiles hadn't eaten for days.
All the reptiles were taken away and given antibiotics and food – and found to have tissue damage linked to low temperatures and starvation, said Ms Curry.
She said: "All but two of the animals were rehomed."
A soft-shell turtle and a green iguana were put to sleep.
When Newton was interviewed by RSPCA inspector Clare Hall, he told her he had set up a sanctuary for rehoming exotic animals at his home and was doing an on-line diploma.
He thought the temperatures the reptiles were kept in were acceptable and believed the turtles were happy.
At an earlier hearing before South Tyneside magistrates this week, he denied causing unnecessary suffering to reptiles by failing to keep them warm, failing to provide a green iguana with a suitable diet, and letting a soft-shelled turtle and leopard gecko suffer pain and disease between the same dates.
The RSPCA withdrew the second and third charges, and Newton changed his plea to guilty on the first.
Yesterday, Newton was given a community order for 12 months, with supervision by the Probation Service.
He was banned from keeping exotic reptiles, excluding tropical fish, for two years and ordered to pay £246 vet's costs and £40 RSPCA costs.
Anna Metcalfe, mitigating, said Newton set up a non-profit sanctuary for reptiles that were in a poor state or neglected by their owners.
On the day of the RSPCA's visit, he was building new shelters and they were due to be moved in later that day.
Newton, she said, had set up a website, Slithering Serpents, and had asked the RSPCA to support him, but it didn't respond to him.
The defence also sought opinion from an expert on exotic animals, and he concluded that the case could have been dealt with by a caution, advice and a follow-up visit.
Ms Metcalfe said: "His intention has always been to care for these animals."
Bench chairman Raymond McDonald told Newton: "We do not believe you deliberately set out to harm these animals."
Reptile man's sanctuary of suffering

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