Animal ban for man who left cat limping in pain

A man has been banned from keeping animals for 10 years after failing to get treatment for his cat's broken leg.

Slough Borough Council launched an investigation after the cat, called Jackson, was spotted "limping and crying out" at a property on Wexham Road in August 2025.

David Wallis, 36, pleaded guilty at Slough Magistrates' Court to animal welfare offences and was sentenced to a 100-hour community order, which included 12 sessions of mental health treatment. He was ordered to pay costs of £5,674.

The council said the situation could have been avoided if Wallis had sought treatment earlier. It confirmed Jackson had now recovered and has since been adopted by a loving family.

The council said it had received a report about a cat holding its leg at an awkward angle but not being attended to by its owner.

Its animal welfare officer visited the property and saw the young ginger cat was unable to bear weight on one of his legs.

Wallis told the officer that Jackson had injured himself jumping off a kitchen cupboard.

He allowed the officer to take Jackson to a vet where a complete fracture of his right front leg, which was trying to heal at an abnormal angle, was discovered .

The council said the vet stated that if Jackson had been taken to a vet immediately after the injury, it was highly likely the leg could have been straightened, bandaged and splinted to allow it to heal properly, and he could have been given pain relief.

The options were to amputate Jackson's leg or to put him down.

The council said Wallis told officials he could not afford the veterinary bill and agreed to permanently sign ownership of the cat over to the authority. Jackson then underwent surgery.

After a vet told a council officer that Jackson's injury was unlikely to have been caused by jumping from a cabinet, and was more consistent with a fall from a height, an object falling on him or being trodden on, the council launched an investigation.

Wallis was invited to attend a formal voluntary interview under caution on 4 September 2025.

Wallis did not engage with the investigation, and prosecution proceedings were launched for animal welfare offences, the council said.

Councillor Zafar Satti, the council's lead member for public protection and regulatory services, said: "It's only because of a report from a concerned person that we became aware of this case, so thank you to them for noticing something was wrong, helping to prevent further suffering."