Dogs with cropped ears found crammed into box at West Midlands home

A Birmingham man has been slapped with a suspended prison sentence and a lifetime ban from keeping dogs after he was caught breaching a previous disqualification order. James Lloyd Kimberley, 37, failed to comply with a five-year dog ownership ban imposed in 2020 for neglecting seven dogs.

Kimberley’s latest brush with the law came after police and RSPCA officers discovered three dogs with cropped ears at her property on July 4, 2023. The dogs, named Bear, Luna and Tank, were found huddled in a crate in the kitchen, along with gruesome evidence of ear cutting, such as bloody scissors and a steel clamp.

Ear cropping, often done to achieve a certain “look”, is considered purely cosmetic and has no health benefits for the animal. The district judge, during sentencing, highlighted Kimberley’s “high risk” status for the dogs, referring to his previous convictions and links to the “murky world of ear cropping”, suggesting he had knowledge of both practitioners and about clients involved in this cruel practice, even if he wasn’t the one performing the procedures.

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Kimberley, of Berkley Road, Birmingham, was given a 21-week prison sentence, suspended for two years, and made subject to a marked curfew between 7pm and 7am for four months. He must also pay a victim surcharge of £154 and pay costs of £800.

His ban on keeping dogs was extended for life, with no possibility of appeal for a decade, reports Birmingham Live.

An RSPCA spokesman commented: “We would like to thank those who helped us in our investigations. We rely on members of the public to tell us if someone has broken a ban. We depend on the public to be our eyes and ears. and we take breach of bans very seriously – and so do the courts”.

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