A WOMAN who left 20 dogs and cats living in 'filthy' conditions at her home has been banned from keeping animals for life.

RSPCA officials were called in when Catherine Allsagar, 37, sent five cats for cremation, within a short space of time.

Magistrates in Burnley were told at a hearing in March that when inspectors arrived at Allsagar's then-home in Elizabeth Street, Accrington, they were faced with 'appalling' living quarters.

Two dogs were being kept in cramped crates in one room, which had been wired shut and kept against a wall, so they could not move around freely, the court heard.

Christopher Wyatt, prosecuting, said there were also caskets containing the ashes of seven cats in a lounge.

An RSPCA inspector was first alerted to Allsagar's case by Manchester Dog's Home, after five cats had been brought there for cremation.

But by the time an investigator arrived, only three cats remained, and their bodies were all found to be dirty and unkempt.

Ben Leech told magistrates at the previous hearing in Burnley that his client had ad undergone periods of psychiatric treatment and care.

Appearing for sentence at Blackburn Magistrates Court, after social inquiry reports had been compiled, Allsagar, now of Richmond Road, Accrington, was given a six-week term of imprisonment, suspended for 12 months.

She was also ordered to complete 35 days of rehabilitation activities, under the supervision of the probation service, as well as being given a lifetime disqualification on looking after any form of animal, after pleading guilty to five animal welfare offences and two offences of causing unnecessary suffering.

Speaking after the case, an RSPCA spokesman said: "Allsagar signed over one of her dogs and six cats, which we will now be assess for rehoming."

Another man involved in the same case, Malcolm Ogden, 58, of Frederick Street, Accrington, whose home was found to have four dogs, living in similarly dirty conditions, will be sentenced by magistrates on June 5.

Ogden's case was sparked off when Allsagar sent a picture of a dead dog, lying in his bathroom, to the RSPCA.

He has admitted two animal welfare offences.

Mr Leech said Allsagar was effectively Ogden's carer and they both had issues which needed addressing.