ANIMAL welfare activists have slammed the penalty handed down to a Hobart man who tore the heads off two kittens outside a suburban home two years ago.

Hobart Magistrate Olivia McTaggart yesterday sentenced Jamie Peter Smart, 32, to a wholly suspended three-month jail term, also ordering him to perform 49 hours of community service.



He was also placed on probation for nine months.



Smart was at a party at Glenorchy on the night in question. He walked next door and decapitated the kittens with his bare hands.



The horrified neighbours and owners of the kittens saw him with one of their pet's heads in his hand. They called triple 0.



Police charged Smart with aggravated cruelty after finding his DNA on the dismembered animal bodies.



Officers involved in the investigation later said it was one of the most disturbing cases they had encountered.



Stop Tasmanian Animal Cruelty said the penalty did not reflect community expectations.



"This man tortured to death two kittens, for no apparent reason," STAC spokeswoman Suzanne Cass said.



"This charge is the most serious of the offences under the Animal Welfare Act.



"This sentence is totally meaningless and provides absolutely no deterrent."

For more updates, see The Mercury.