A man responsible for the death of two cats found ridden with fleas and maggots who also neglected two others has been banned from owning animals.

WARNING: Distressing images below

Isaac Fihosy, of Chatham High Street, left the four pets in squalid conditions covered in their own filth and fleas.

The 34-year-old was found guilty of causing their unnecessary suffering following a trial and was sentenced at Medway Magistrates’ Court last Thursday.

RSPCA Inspector Deborah Rutherford first investigated in August 2019 after receiving a call about a dead kitten and other cats with matted fur and visible bones at a property in Rosebery Road, Gillingham.

Fihosy explained to the RSPCA officer that he was a live-in landlord and alleged that his tenant had killed his kitten and so he had locked the other cats outside to protect them.

On inspection of the property, Inspector Rutherford found two dog crates in the garden with bowls and an area with some cover.

There were bricks on the top and there were no kittens inside with litter trays full of faeces.

Midnight, an adult female black cat, was presented to the PDSA pet hospital in Gillingham by her owner for an examination on August 8, 2019, having had kittens three months previously.

She was underweight, covered in fleas and had been suffering from diarrhoea with scalding on her back.

Inspector Rutherford said: “When I arrived at PDSA they had one adult cat and one kitten belonging to Mr Fihosy.

"Sadly, they had to put one kitten to sleep due to an injury and maggot infestation.

"The adult cat still had chronic diarrhoea and a chronic prolapse which needed surgery."

The vet said they struggled to get in touch with Fihosy as the surgery needed consent and it took four days to make contact.

The adult cat, Midnight, also known as Bacon, had multiple chronic issues and weighed only 1.3kg when she should have been around 2.8kg.

Insp Rutherford added: “I was shocked at the poor body condition of Midnight and the state of her fur.

"She was an adult cat but looked like a kitten, she was so small.”

Chandrika, who is Midnight’s male kitten, also had a prolapse and weighed only 600g. Both cats had diarrhoea, fleas and possible worms.

A four-month-old female tortoiseshell kitten was presented to vets two days later and was found to be very underweight and had a large area of skin and soft tissue missing from her rear end which was infested with maggots.

She was in such a bad way that vets made the difficult decision to euthanise this kitten to end her suffering.

The second female tortoiseshell kitten was sadly found dead in her bed. A postmortem revealed that she was in an severely weakened condition and with fleas.

During the court hearing a vet report stated that all four cats would have suffered.

Fihosy was found guilty of six offences related to their unneccessary suffering and neglect.

He was sentenced to a community order of 12 months with 23 rehabilitation activity requirement days, as well as 150 hours of unpaid work.

A deprivation order was granted for both of the cats, Midnight and Chandrika, subject to an appeal within 56 days, and he was banned from keeping all animals for five years. He was also ordered to pay costs of £1,300.

The two surviving cats are currently still in the care of the RSPCA.