A dead cat’s body was eaten by other pet cats after they were neglected by a Fife Council care worker.
Hannah Band failed to inform her employer after she was convicted of the offence at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court in April last year.
Band confined three cats named Odin, Loki and Thor to a kitchen with no means of escape between February 26 and April 9 2023.
As a result, Odin and Loki were exposed to the carcass of Thor, who had died, and consumed the remains.
Band also did not provide a clean litter tray, failed to provide adequate ventilation, exposed the cats to household debris, and failed to provide nutrition or hydration.
As a result, she failed to protect the cats from suffering.
Care worker struck off after neglected pets consumed dead cat’s body
The Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) launched a probe after claims that Band had failed to inform both the watchdog and her employer, Fife Council, of her conviction.
Band – who was working for East Fife Care at Home in Glenrothes at the time of the offence – has now been struck off.
The watchdog’s report said: “A conviction for animal neglect demonstrates a disregard for the law and breaches the trust and confidence placed in you as a social service worker.
“Given that social service workers are employed in caring roles, your neglect for three vulnerable cats in your care is fundamentally at odds with the values and character expected of a social service worker and amounts to behaviour which causes serious concern.”
It added that Band has been prohibited from owning or keeping animals as part of her sentence.
The watchdog said: “Your failure to inform prevented both the SSSC and the employer from making an informed decision about your employment and any risks you may present to users of services.”
The decision said Ms Band’s removal from the register was “both necessary and justified in the public interest”.
Sharon McKenzie, head of HR at Fife Council, said: “As a responsible employer, we don’t discuss the individual circumstances of any current or former employees.”
Elsewhere, The Courier’s care round-up includes a Fife nursery worker who made a child spycam video being struck off.
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