WARNING: CONTAINS DISTRESSING IMAGE

Twins who punched, kicked and dragged a dog to its death have been jailed and banned from keeping animals for life after being found guilty of killing the animal while high on drink and drugs.

Liam and Keir Fackrell, 31, had only taken Shar Pei dog Ruby from her previous owner hours before the brutal killing.

Witnesses saw Liam Fackrell repeatedly punching the dog in the head, kicking her and then dragging her along the floor - and his brother was also seen dragging the dog along the ground by her lead.

The pair were found guilty of the appalling crime at Medway Magistrates' Court yesterday after earlier pleading not guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to an animal.

The court heard how the pair were seen mistreating the animal by several people near to the Kestrel Shopping Centre, in Lordswood, late one night April last year. By the time the police arrived, Ruby was already dead.

The pair were "drink and drug-addled" when they carried out the disgusting attack in which Ruby suffered bleeding and bruising to her brain and oesophagus after Liam savagely punched her in the head between 15 and 20 times.

She also suffered bleeding and grazing to her paws as she was brutally dragged along the street in a semi-unconscious state and later dragged further after she had died.

The court heard a harrowing witness account from one Lordswood resident, who had been looking out of his window at the time.

The homeless pair, who lived in a shed, were also seen by others either dragging or lunging at the dog.

The man, who works in the security industry, had heard barking and distress noises coming from a dog near his home and had looked out of his window to see what was going on.

He told the court: "A man (Liam) came into view with the dog and was pulling it aggressively by the lead, the dog's front legs were up in the air at times.

"He dragged the dog and then called out another man, 'can you come and help me with this bloody dog'.

"The second male, (Keir), crossed the road and appeared with a black stocky dog, and said he had his own problems (with his dog).

"Then the first male, (Liam) held the dog to the floor and punched it between 15 and 20 times.

"He was holding it to the floor and punching it repeatedly with his right hand, blows to the head and upper chest and he kicked it three or four times.

"The dog appeared unconscious and then it was dragged across the road, both its front and back legs were behind it so I thought it was either unconscious or dead."

Liam and his brother then go out of the witness's view, but he again hears the dog yelping in distress, dialed 999, got dressed to try and stop the pair abusing the dog further.

He got in his car with his wife and found the pair and the lifeless dog at a bus stop near the shops, which is when police turned up and arrested the twins on suspicion of animal cruelty.

Liam had blood down his arm, which is believed to have come from the dog's mouth and the police saw Keir slapping the dog across the face in a bid to revive her.

They also saw Liam was talking to the dog and both brothers were trying to convince each other the dog was not dead.

The officers also gave evidence in court and said the twins were aggressive towards them and appeared to have been drinking and were in a confused dazed state.

A post mortem revealed Ruby's injuries were said to be have probably been caused by external blunt trauma blows and being dragged along the ground, which a vet said would have been hugely painful for her and that undoubtedly the animal suffered during the attack.

Both brothers denied causing any injury to the dog during their police interviews.

James Ross, defending, said: "They were addled with drink and drugs, they were have been taking drugs since they were 16 or 17, which is nearly half their life now that drugs have been an issue."

Magistrates jailed Liam for 180 days and Keir was jailed for 90 days. Both were banned from keeping animals indefinitely and ordered to pay £500 court costs each.

The twins' other dog, a Staffordshire bull terrier called Boyce, was unharmed and handed over to the RSPCA at the time of the incident.