WINDSOR – An Aulander man has been ordered to never again own a pet.

Wednesday morning, 24-year-old Anderson Christopher Bell stood before Judge Vershenia Moody in Bertie County District Court and accepted his punishment for animal neglect.

Bell, arrested May 10 for three counts of cruelty to animals, was found not guilty on two of those counts, but entered a “no contest” plea on the third charge. Per information requested by newspaper from the Bertie County Clerk of Court’s office, Bell was given a prayer for judgment, ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $338 to PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) no later than Oct. 31, and permanently prohibited from assuming care or custody of any animal.

According to a Wednesday afternoon press release from PETA, the allegations lodged against Bell stemmed from repeated site visits made by members of that organization to his Aulander residence.

“PETA’s first visit to Bell’s home in November 2012 revealed that he kept three pit bulls – two adults and a puppy – chained day and night amid their own waste,” PETA stated in the press release. “They were extremely malnourished and deprived of basic necessities such as shelter, food, drinkable water, and medical care for parasitic infestations.”

PETA fieldworkers furthered alleged that during a follow-up visit to Bell’s home, they found the puppy (“Ice”) near death.

“He (the puppy) was rushed to a veterinary hospital, where a veterinarian determined that he was critically anemic as a result of a severe hookworm infestation,” it was stated in the press release. “Ice weighed just 16 pounds, when his bodyweight should have been 35 pounds.”

PETA offered to provide the two remaining dogs with free veterinary care, but they claimed Bell refused that request.

“Their health continued to decline over several weeks. In January, a PETA fieldworker found both adult dogs (“Dallas and Diamond”) again dangerously emaciated. They were taken into PETA’s custody and treated by a veterinarian,” the press released stated.

“We thank the court for recognizing that a person who neglects dogs until they are literally starving to death is someone who should never again be trusted with an animal’s care,” says PETA Senior Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch. “No more animals will suffer at Bell’s hands, and we ask anyone who witnesses cruelty to animals to report it immediately.”

Nachminovitch said PETA’s Community Animal Project (CAP) delivers food, doghouses, and bedding to neglected animals in Virginia and North Carolina. CAP staff and volunteers transport animals to veterinarians and counsel animal guardians on proper care, such as always allowing companion animals to live inside the house with their families.