Trader fined for his rabbit's long teeth

A trader who attempted to sell a rabbit with overgrown teeth in a livestock market has been fined £215. David Shipton, of Burton-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to the rabbit he was selling at Stratford upon Avon livestock market and has been prosecuted by Warwickshire County Council trading standards.

The animal’s long teeth restricted its ability to eat. However, it was later returned to Shipton and is understood to be back to full health. The council’s animal health officers discovered the rabbit on a routine visit to the market. The teeth were so long they were preventing the animal from eating to satisfy its dietary requirements.



Officers immediately contacted the market vet who observed that the animal was thin and she was able to feel its ribs. At Leamington Justice Centre, 65-year-old Shipton, who represented himself, pleaded guilty to three offences under the Animal Welfare Act, the Welfare of Animals at Markets Order, and the Animal Health Act.

He was fined £130 for the most serious offence, that of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. Shipton was also ordered to pay a further £70 toward the prosecution’s costs and a £15 victim surcharge. Shipton said he acknowledged he should not have entered the rabbit, with long teeth, for sale but he did not believe that he had been cruel.