THE RSPCA is calling on prospective pet owners to personally check breeding facilities after a Lewiston cat breeder was convicted of a series of animal cruelty offences.

Sandra Yandell, 66, was convicted in the Elizabeth Magistrates Court of nine counts of ill-treatment of an animal and one count of failing to comply with the South Australian Standards and Guidelines for Breeding and Trading Companion Animals.

The charges arose after the RSPCA seized 118 ragdoll cats from Yandell’s Lewiston property on May 27.

When attending the property, the inspectors found three dead kittens, extensive cat faeces and urine throughout the house and enclosures, utensils filled with contaminated water and filthy bedding materials.

In addition, some of the animals required immediate veterinary attention for a range of untreated health issues, including a cat with significant teeth issues, another which had suffered for at least two months from an infection caused by dew claws and a number of kittens with untreated conditions.

RSPCA SA chief inspector Andrea Lewis said anyone who purchased a kitten from the convicted breeder “would be shocked to see the conditions their animal came from”.

“We urge people, as part of their due diligence, to see the breeding facilities firsthand and meet the parents of the animal they’re thinking of buying,” she said.

“It’s not about the kittens and puppies that look so appealing in the online adverts, it’s about the breeding mothers, forced to produce litter after litter.

“If you don’t see for yourself what kind of operation the breeder is running, you risk supporting the kind of animal suffering evident in this case.”

Yandell was sentenced to a six-month suspended prison sentence and a two-year good behaviour bond.

Magistrate Yoong Fee Chin prohibited Yandell from acquiring any further animals, but she was allowed to retain ownership of three cats.

Their welfare will be monitored by RSPCA inspectors.