Cruel Ian Howard, 32, and Samantha Briggs, 29, let their poor boxer, Bella, regularly lap at a mop bucket containing the toxic liquid - resulting in severe weight loss, blood in her mouth and the erosion of half of her tongue.

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Her plight was only realised after the shameless pair took suffering Bella in to see a vet, who was horrified at her painful weight, about worms.

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The disgraceful owners, from Bradford, West Yorks., had allowed their pet to perish to just 10.4 kg, half of her normal body weight, and she was described as "totally emaciated" by a vet, who saw blood dripping from her mouth.

Bradford Magistrates Court heard on Tuesday that Howard and Briggs thought their mistreated hound was just depressed even though they admitted they had allowed her to drink from a bucket containing bleach for two years.

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Nigel Monaghan, prosecuting for the RSPCA, said: This boxer dog had been drinking from the mop bucket for as long as they had the dog.

"That resulted in the dog's tongue rotting and as a result the dog has lost half its tongue."

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Thankfully, Bella has since been rehomed and has now gained weight to return to a bouncing bundle of energy, but the court was told the bleach has caused long term damage to her kidneys, which is likely to affect her life expectancy.

Careless Howard and Briggs also pleaded guilty to failing to obtain veterinary attention for a five-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier named Max who suffered from conjunctivitis in both eyes.

Mitigating for both defendants, Tariq Hussain claimed the bleach was needed to clean up quickly after Max, who often soiled inside the house - posing a risk to Briggs' children.

He said the couple had gone through a time of considerable stress while Bella lost weight, adding: "Yes, there's a period when they could have noticed it but they had other problems in their lives which were massive."

Bench chairman Phillip Brown said: "All animal keepers are in a position of trust. You have abused that trust."

Both of the thoughtless defendants pleaded guilty to failing to provide Bella with an adequate diet and address the cause of her weight loss between January 14 and April 14 this year.

They were banned from keeping animals for five years and given a three-year conditional discharge. In addition, Howard was ordered to pay 650 pounds towards costs, and Briggs 250 pounds.

He added, however, that their guilty pleas, the fact they took Bella to a vet and their personal circumstances had been taken into account.

After the hearing, RSPCA Inspector Carol Neale said: We are pleased to have got the disqualification.

"The dogs have made a good recovery but Bella's life has been shortened because of the bleach.

"She now lives in a lovely home and we hope one can also be found for Max."