A MALLEE farmer has been fined $65,000 and disqualified for 25 years from owning any farm animal or being a person in charge of any farm animal after pleading guilty to animal cruelty charges and being sentenced recently at the Ballarat Magistrates’ Court.

Agriculture Victoria Animal Health and Welfare Compliance program manager, Daniel Bode, said Steven Ralston was convicted of 14 charges, including multiple failures to provide proper and sufficient food and drink to his livestock, a failure to treat flystrike sheep and a breach of a previously imposed order by the court requiring Mr Ralston to provide appropriate care to his stock.