THE man responsible for one of the region's worst animal cruelty cases has been jailed for six months and banned from keeping animals for the rest of his life.

Lee Howard was today sentenced to 26 weeks in custody for four charges of animal cruelty and neglect relating to the deaths of 29 animals, whose rotting bodies were discovered at Bank Top Stables, at Trimdon, County Durham, last May.

The 39-year-old had admitted causing unnecessary suffering to 13 horses, four dogs, 11 hens and a rabbit by unreasonably confining them in an environment that was detrimental to their welfare at an earlier hearing.

He also pleaded guilty to abandoning three dogs in circumstances likely to cause them unnecessary suffering, all of which have since been rehomed by the RSPCA.

Magistrates sitting at Newton Aycliffe today, heard that Howard, of Douglas Street, Middlesbrough, left the animals locked up in the stables without access to food or water for several weeks causing them to die of starvation and dehydration.

Jane Scott, in mitigation, said Howard had lost control of his life and suffered depression around the time of the offences because his mother had cancer and died of the illness in February 2005.

Imposing the maximum sentence available to the magistrates, chairman of the bench David Beattie said: "You should really feel absolutely ashamed of yourself. I have never seen something like this in my life."

RSCPA inspector Mark Gent said: "This sentence was wholly appropriate for the magnitude of the offence."