A cat subjected to weeks of “horrendous” cruelty in a Wandsworth flat eventually starved to death, a court heard last Tuesday.

Eight-month-old Whiskers, a black and white tom, died after Joanne Elliot, 33, forgot to feed him and left him with fleas and untreated injuries.

Elliot’s only punishment at South Western Magistrates’ Court was a ban on owning a pet, even though her neglect had cost the RSPCA more than £4,000.

Andrew Wiles, RSPCA prosecutor, said: “The lower lip was pulled away and severed from the jaw. There were a number of flea deposits.

“The animal had suffered from prolonged malnutrition, most likely due to simple starvation.”

He added the animal’s body was extremely emaciated, and said it had not been fed properly for at least four weeks.

Whiskers’ body was found on June 19 last year when neighbours heard a voice inside Elliot’s home, in Geraldine Road, say the cat was dead.

One entered the flat and took the animal to the RSPCA in Putney. A postmortem examination was carried out and revealed the extent of the neglect.

The veterinary work and subsequent investigation cost the RSPCA, a charity that relies on donations from the public, £4,201.50.

Elliot wept in the dock as Mrs Staveley, the district judge, branded the treatment “horrendous” but spared her a fine.

She said: “Given your very limited means I’m not going to make an order for costs – as much as I would like to do so, given the RSPCA is a charity.”

Elliot, a mother who now lives in Rectory Lane, Tooting, pleaded guilty to three counts of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal.

She was given a 12-month supervision order, a 60-day mental health programme and a ban from owning an animal for five years.

Her lawyer, Miss Pagett, claimed she was suffering from depression and may one day be eligible to own an animal again.

But speaking outside court, Phil Norman, RSPCA inspector, said: “It’s hard to know how anyone can leave a cat in this condition and allow it to starve to death.”