By . Liz Hull . PUBLISHED: . 17:06 EST, 19 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:06 EST, 19 July 2013 . Arrested: Retired vet John Spicer, 70, was arrested and held in a cell for 24 hours . A retired vet woke to find a police torch being shone into his face when officers raided his home after the RSPCA received a tip-off that his two pet dogs were being maltreated. A total of 13 officials – police, firemen and RSPCA officers – turned up unannounced in six vehicles at 70-year-old John Spicer’s home and broke down the door to get in while he was asleep. His sheepdogs Puppy and Little Boy were taken away and Puppy was destroyed immediately. Mr Spicer was arrested on suspicion of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. He had his fingerprints, DNA and mugshot taken and was held in a police cell for 24 hours before being released. Yesterday he criticised the RSPCA for being heavy-handed and said he has still not been told what has happened to Little Boy. ‘The whole episode was a total over-reaction,’ Mr Spicer said. ‘I was asleep inside and the first thing I knew was a torch being shone six inches from my face by a police officer. ‘I was put barefoot in the back of a police van and told I was being arrested. I was in a cell at a police station for 24 hours. ‘This was the first time ever I’ve been taken to a police station in my life, I have been left shaken by it. It was completely over the top.’ Mr Spicer, who lives in the village of Gobowen near Oswestry, Shropshire, was released after being questioned by officers from the animal welfare charity. Yesterday an RSPCA spokesman refused to say whether Mr Spicer would face prosecution as the investigation is ongoing. His ordeal began at around 5pm on July 8 when two RSPCA officers in separate vans, two constables, a sergeant and two PCSOs from West Mercia Police in two cars and a van, plus a fire engine with six firemen on board, turned up at his whitewashed terraced home. After using a fire engine ladder to peer inside an upstairs window, they broke down the door and let themselves in. Taken away: The RSPCA and police take Puppy the sheepdog from Mr Spicer's home before putting the dog down . Led away: Mr Spicer has yet to find out the fate of Puppy's brother Little Boy . They took away 12-year-old Puppy, which had been suffering ill health due to a spinal injury and had partly lost the use of its legs, as well as ten-year-old Little Boy, Puppy’s brother, claiming they were not being looked after properly. But Mr Spicer, who was a vet for 30 years, said he had been treating Puppy’s illness, which he described as ‘complicated,’ himself and the dog had been improving. He said: ‘The police decided there was no case to prosecute. I’ve heard nothing since from the RSPCA.’ Mr Spicer, a bachelor, added that he doesn’t know how he will live without his dogs. ‘I’ve not lived in my house without a dog for 30 years,’ he said. ‘At some stage it is going to hit me that the house is empty.’ Neighbour Mark Breeze, 47, said: ‘I’ve never seen John mistreat an animal in my life, he always looks after his dogs very well. He’s very cut up about it.’ A spokesman for the RSPCA said they had attempted to contact Mr Spicer on numerous occasions after receiving several calls about the welfare of his dogs. It is understood he was reported to the charity several times by a concerned local. Heavy handed: A total of 13 officials turned up at 70-year-old John Spicer¿s home in Gobowen near Oswestry, Shropshire, and broke down the door to get in while he was asleep . ‘We will always attempt to work with owners to safeguard the welfare of their animals,’ the spokesman said. ‘The dog was put to sleep by an independent vet – on their advice as nothing more could be done to help it. ‘A second dog still belongs to the man, it has not been taken permanently, but it will remain in RSPCA care while the investigation continues. ‘The conditions the dog had been living in were not suitable and it is now being treated for a skin condition.’ Anne Kasica, who runs the Self-Help Group, an organisation for animal owners ‘experiencing difficulties with the RSPCA’, said: ‘It’s appalling that an elderly man can be treated this way, but unfortunately we’ve seen it all before. ‘All the RSPCA seem to care about is prosecutions because they bring in donations through publicity.’ Tory councillor David Lloyd, who represents Gobowen, said: ‘Many villagers were angry at the heavy-handed way in which the reclusive Mr Spicer appears to have been treated.’ Tory MP Simon Hart, a former head of the Countryside Alliance, claims the RSPCA is pursuing an ‘aggressive political agenda’ against pet owners which is ‘at odds with animal welfare’.
A dozen officers broke down the door to John Spicer's home .
They took his two sheepdogs and put one down immediately .
The retired vet was was arrested and held in a police cell for 24 hours .
By . Liz Hull . PUBLISHED: . 17:06 EST, 19 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:06 EST, 19 July 2013 . Arrested: Retired vet John Spicer, 70, was arrested and held in a cell for 24 hours . A retired vet woke to find a police torch being shone into his face when officers raided his home after the RSPCA received a tip-off that his two pet dogs were being maltreated. A total of 13 officials – police, firemen and RSPCA officers – turned up unannounced in six vehicles at 70-year-old John Spicer’s home and broke down the door to get in while he was asleep. His sheepdogs Puppy and Little Boy were taken away and Puppy was destroyed immediately. Mr Spicer was arrested on suspicion of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. He had his fingerprints, DNA and mugshot taken and was held in a police cell for 24 hours before being released. Yesterday he criticised the RSPCA for being heavy-handed and said he has still not been told what has happened to Little Boy. ‘The whole episode was a total over-reaction,’ Mr Spicer said. ‘I was asleep inside and the first thing I knew was a torch being shone six inches from my face by a police officer. ‘I was put barefoot in the back of a police van and told I was being arrested. I was in a cell at a police station for 24 hours. ‘This was the first time ever I’ve been taken to a police station in my life, I have been left shaken by it. It was completely over the top.’ Mr Spicer, who lives in the village of Gobowen near Oswestry, Shropshire, was released after being questioned by officers from the animal welfare charity. Yesterday an RSPCA spokesman refused to say whether Mr Spicer would face prosecution as the investigation is ongoing. His ordeal began at around 5pm on July 8 when two RSPCA officers in separate vans, two constables, a sergeant and two PCSOs from West Mercia Police in two cars and a van, plus a fire engine with six firemen on board, turned up at his whitewashed terraced home. After using a fire engine ladder to peer inside an upstairs window, they broke down the door and let themselves in. Taken away: The RSPCA and police take Puppy the sheepdog from Mr Spicer's home before putting the dog down . Led away: Mr Spicer has yet to find out the fate of Puppy's brother Little Boy . They took away 12-year-old Puppy, which had been suffering ill health due to a spinal injury and had partly lost the use of its legs, as well as ten-year-old Little Boy, Puppy’s brother, claiming they were not being looked after properly. But Mr Spicer, who was a vet for 30 years, said he had been treating Puppy’s illness, which he described as ‘complicated,’ himself and the dog had been improving. He said: ‘The police decided there was no case to prosecute. I’ve heard nothing since from the RSPCA.’ Mr Spicer, a bachelor, added that he doesn’t know how he will live without his dogs. ‘I’ve not lived in my house without a dog for 30 years,’ he said. ‘At some stage it is going to hit me that the house is empty.’ Neighbour Mark Breeze, 47, said: ‘I’ve never seen John mistreat an animal in my life, he always looks after his dogs very well. He’s very cut up about it.’ A spokesman for the RSPCA said they had attempted to contact Mr Spicer on numerous occasions after receiving several calls about the welfare of his dogs. It is understood he was reported to the charity several times by a concerned local. Heavy handed: A total of 13 officials turned up at 70-year-old John Spicer¿s home in Gobowen near Oswestry, Shropshire, and broke down the door to get in while he was asleep . ‘We will always attempt to work with owners to safeguard the welfare of their animals,’ the spokesman said. ‘The dog was put to sleep by an independent vet – on their advice as nothing more could be done to help it. ‘A second dog still belongs to the man, it has not been taken permanently, but it will remain in RSPCA care while the investigation continues. ‘The conditions the dog had been living in were not suitable and it is now being treated for a skin condition.’ Anne Kasica, who runs the Self-Help Group, an organisation for animal owners ‘experiencing difficulties with the RSPCA’, said: ‘It’s appalling that an elderly man can be treated this way, but unfortunately we’ve seen it all before. ‘All the RSPCA seem to care about is prosecutions because they bring in donations through publicity.’ Tory councillor David Lloyd, who represents Gobowen, said: ‘Many villagers were angry at the heavy-handed way in which the reclusive Mr Spicer appears to have been treated.’ Tory MP Simon Hart, a former head of the Countryside Alliance, claims the RSPCA is pursuing an ‘aggressive political agenda’ against pet owners which is ‘at odds with animal welfare’.
arrested and held in a cell for 24 hours . A retired vet woke to find a police torch being 70-year-old John Spicer’s home and broke down the broke down the door to get in while he was asleep