Here at Londonist, we believe in being kind to animals, which is why it breaks our hearts to stories of animal abuse. There's also little satisfaction in hearing of the conviction of Alexandra Zochios, 49, a teaching assistant who starved her mother's shiatsu.
The shiatsu, called Zoe, weighed a mere 2kg when she died. The RSPCA intervened on 6 November and took the dog for treatment, however after Zoe went into cardiac arrest, the vet caring for her was forced to euthanise her as the only humane alternative.
Zochios had been caring for the dog and her mother, who has advanced Alzheimer's disease. According to Zochios, she left food out for the dog as a favour to her mother, but as she never stayed to watch the dog eat the food, assumes her mother must have cleared the food away. Zochios was convicted of both failing to feed the dog, and failing to provide the necessary medical attention. She will be sentenced on 22 April. Please, people, be kind to animals.
Photo of RSPCA charity box from John Wesley Barker's Flickrstream.
