A PUBLIC demostration is to take place this Saturday to call for longer jail sentences to be handed out to animal abusers.
The campaign group Northern Ireland Says NO to Animal Cruelty (NISNTAC) is calling on animal-lovers to join the event at 11am outside the Royal Courts of Justice in Belfast.
"Starving an animal to death requires time and commitment," a spokeswoman for the group said.
"These cases are not the result of casual thoughtlessness. They are deliberate and methodical acts of neglect where someone has made a conscious choice to deny the animal in their care even the most basic requirements to survive."
The group has urged the legal system in Northern Ireland to hand down longer jail terms.
"We do not believe there is currently any rational deterrent against animal cruelty and neglect within the Northern Ireland judicial system," the spokeswoman added.
"An unwillingness to impose tough sentences sends out a clear message that those who abuse animals will effectively get away with it."
