A PET owner has been banned from keeping animals after treating his dogs’ painful skin condition with sun cream.

Carl Moore, 33, allowed two female Staffordshire Bull Terriers to develop bare patches and enflamed sores on their bodies, and kept them in a yard covered in excrement.

Unemployed Moore, of Murrayfield Way, Darlington, believed the animals’ injuries were sunburn, and applied the cream to cure their exposed flesh.

Darlington Magistrates’ Court heard the dogs, which were found at an address in Beaconsfield Street, Darlington, in April, had been left without treatment for a month.

The court was told terminally-ill Moore, who suffers from chronic pancreatitis, had arranged for another man to care for eight-year-old Summer and nine-year-old Tyson, owing to his poor health.

However, Kevin Campbell, prosecuting on behalf of the RSCPA, said the animals were left in a poor state.

He said: “There are deep-seated issued with him looking after animals, these dogs both had bare patches on their skin and had unnecessarily suffered.

“He saw Tyson nibbling at his injuries but thought it was sunburn.

“The dogs’ kennel area was unsatisfactory and faeces had not been cleaned up.”

Mr Campbell said the dogs have recovered from their injuries after being treated by a vet.

David Dedman, mitigating for Moore, who pleaded guilty to two counts of causing unnecessary suffering, said it was not deliberate cruelty.

He said: “The dogs were neglected for a very short period and they will fully recover.

“They had been fed and were of good body weight.

“He is an extremely ill man who has fought a long battle with alcohol.

“When this happened he was bed bound, and had not been in the yard for about three months.

“He was physically upset when he saw the dogs because he loved them and losing them both will be hard for him.”

Chairman of the bench, Patricia Bacon, banned Moore from keeping animals indefinitely and ordered the dogs be taken into RSCPA care.

Speaking after the decision, RSPCA inspector Emma Stainthorpe said: “The fact he’s been banned from keeping all animals is a good result and means this can't happen again.”