Selena the samoyed enjoys better days with her new owner on a beach.

In one of the worst cases of neglect in the country, the SPCA found a dog malnourished, dehydrated and living in her own waste.

Selena the samoyed was on the SPCA's annual list of shame, a compilation of the most serious cases the charity has investigated and prosecuted over the past year.

Selena was found by SPCA inspector Kevin Plowright alongside a Siberian husky and two cats.

SUPPLIED Selena the samoyed was half of what's considered a healthy weight when found.

Their Auckland owner, Pamela De Vere, has been sentenced in North Shore District Court for starving the two dogs and leaving them living in their own waste.



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De Vere was handed a five-year disqualification from owning animals. She has already served two of those years.

SUPPLIED SPCA investigator Inspector Kevin Plowright found Selena in a thin and dehydrated state.

Plowright found the dogs in the garage where De Vere was living in without food or water. They had never spent time outside and smelled of urine.

The pair were malnourished and dehydrated with protruding back, rib and hip bones hidden by their long fur.

At 8km, the dogs weighed half of what would be considered healthy.

SUPPLIED The animals were found on newspapers that hadn't been replaced in many months.

"I ran my hands over the dog and her pelvic bones and all that were extremely prominent and exposed," Plowright said.

Both Selena and the Siberian husky, now named Blu Eyes, have been rehomed.

Two cats were also found, caged at the property with no food or water. They shared piles of dirty newspaper for bedding and it's suspected they never left the cage.

"The cats were confined in a cargo crate, small and confined area. The newspaper had been piled up so high and not been changed. Of course cat faeces and urine was piled up so high the smell was intense," Plowright said.

"There was no area to display normal patterns of behaviour and live as a dog or a cat should live."

This is the second time De Vere has been discovered ill-treating animals after a 2012 search uncovered two malnourished dogs. At the time, she was educated about proper animal care.

SPCA Auckland chief executive Andrea Midgen says she would like to see a longer disqualification period handed down for a case she said was "serious, long-term neglect".

"Ignorance is one thing, blatant disregard for a living creature's health and wellbeing is another, and one that demands legal consequences," Midgen said.

"We believe that taking action through the court is essential to ensuring animal offenders can't hurt animals again – and being disqualified from owning animals is key in this."

The list of shame was released in conjunction with the SPCA's annual appeal.

The appeal ran from November 7 to 13, and saw volunteers raise funds for the 60,000 abused, neglected and lost animals the SPCA cares for annually.

Midgen said SPCA inspectors investigated a record 15,219 animal welfare complaints last year and are the "last hope for many of New Zealand's abused animals".

She said running the SPCA inspectorate costs approximately $9 million a year and the appeal helps the organisation work towards a country with no list of shame.

The 2016 List of Shame features 15 people from Canterbury to Auckland.