An East Ayrshire man who engaged in some of the 'worst examples’ of animal fighting ever seen by animal welfare inspectors has been sentenced to six months in prison and banned from owning and keeping animals indefinitely.

Callum Muir, 25, of Logangate Terrace, Logan, used his dogs terrier Pip, lurcher Bella and bull lurcher Mig to fight animals like badgers and foxes.

He videoed his pet dogs tearing apart live wild animals, all the while laughing and egging them on.

He also failed to seek veterinary treatment for any of the injuries his dogs sustained as a result of the fights.

Muir was sentenced at Ayr Sheriff Court today (Tuesday, May 24).

All three dogs were signed over to the care of the Scottish SPCA (SSPCA) and have since found new homes.

In April 2021 the animal welfare charity received intelligence that suggested Muir was using dogs in animal fights.

This led to the SSPCA's special investigations unit (SIU) executing a warrant at his home address on May 4, 2021.

Inspectors entered the property and seized three dogs with injuries which suggested they had been involved in multiple fights.

At the property, there was evidence that he was self-treating his dog’s injuries, which most individuals who are involved in animal fighting will do to avoid the authorities being alerted.

The SIU found several items associated with animal fighting, including locator collars which are used to track dogs when they are underground in badger setts.

Officers also discovered nets for catching wild animals when they bolt from their den. This evidence was analysed by experts at Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture (SASA) and fox and badger DNA was found.

An inspector from the SIU, who must remain anonymous due to the nature of their work, said: “The evidence we found at Mr Muir’s home address was consistent with what you’d typically find when someone is heavily involved in animal fighting.

"All three of his dogs had significant injuries across their faces. Pip and Bella, the two older dogs, had injuries across their neck and legs.

"Both dogs had several missing teeth as a result of the fights they’d been in, and the lack of appropriate veterinary treatment would have made the suffering even worse.

“Mig had some scarring to her muzzle and legs, but as she was a much larger, stronger and younger dog, it’s likely she’d been able to avoid serious injury up to this point.

"The SIU recovered a number of video and images in Muir’s possession showing dogs, including his own pets, fighting wild animals.”

The inspector said: “In my line of work you see a lot of stomach-churning examples of animal cruelty, but the videos and images relating to this case are among the worst I’ve ever seen.

“The complete disregard for the wellbeing of the dogs and wild animals in the videos is appalling.

"In many of the [videos], Mr Muir can be heard encouraging his dogs to attack wild animals as they scream in pain.

"In one clip, he laughs as a fox’s skin is torn away and they are ripped in half by dogs. In another, two of his dogs attack a fox whilst a man stamps on its head as Muir laughs."

The inspector said that Muir's vile actions were deserving of a longer stint in jail. They said: “Given the sheer level of suffering endured by Muir’s dogs, countless wild animals and the depravity of the videos and images he owned, we are disappointed he has not received a longer jail sentence.

“New legislation has now come into effect which means offenders can receive up to five year sentences for animal welfare crimes. We’ve been involved in thousands of criminal cases and this ranks up there as one of the worst.”

The Scottish SPCA’s SIU team is leading efforts to combat animal fighting in Scotland and has secured numerous convictions in recent years.

The charity worked closely with Dr Lucy Webster from the SASA, and the League Against Cruel Sports throughout the investigation.

Robbie Marsland, director of the League Against Cruel Sports Scotland said: "The League is pleased to have played a part in bringing Callum Muir, a horrific animal abuser, to justice, and we commend the Scottish SPCA for such a comprehensive investigation which was absolutely critical in bringing about today's result."

If anyone is concerned about the welfare of an animal, they can contact the Scottish SPCA’s confidential animal helpline on 03000 999 999.