Two London residents pleaded guilty to four counts of animal cruelty after complaints of a neglected dog that was left in a bathroom while they were on vacation.

London Humane Society investigators responded to the complaints on Jan. 6. They executed a search warrant at an apartment on Belmont Drive and subsequently removed a 12-week-old tan Chihuahua mix.

Humane society officials say the owners left on a two-week vacation, leaving the dog locked in a bathroom without securing a caregiver for the duration and though water was left for the dog, it quickly evaporated.

"When the dog came in, clearly the dog had been neglected. You could tell by his body condition and the filth. He had fecal material all over his body," says Judy Foster, executive director of the London Humane Society.

"It's staggering that this puppy was left alone. It's absolutely staggering. It was a nine-week-old puppy," she adds.

Gabrielle Penney, 20, and Kyle O’Neill, 26, both pleaded guilty to causing/permitting distress, failing to provide necessary care and failing to provide appropriate sanitary conditions.

Both individuals received sentences of six months probation, $400 in restitution to be paid to the London Humane Society and a 10-year animal prohibition, banning them from owning or caring for an animal in that time period.

The puppy, renamed Peanut, has since been adopted by Shelley Anderson.

"She's definitely our family, she's another child."

Anderson adds, "It broke my heart to see all those pictures and to see there was no water for her. Now we know why she follows us around so much. She doesn't want to lose her mom and dad again."