Kerrie Maree Fitzpatrick, of Lake Marmal, appeared in the Bendigo County Court on Thursday to appeal a sentence handed down in June last year, which also banned her from owning dogs for 10 years.

Loddon Shire officers visited the property south of Bridgewater three times in February and March 2015, where they found 41 dogs of various breeds with inadequate water, living in faeces-covered pens and with various medical conditions.

Water and waste was unable to flow from some pens, causing it to accumulate.

Shire solicitor Stephanie Bower said the inspectors described the conditions as the “worst they’ve ever seen”, and they were “overwhelmed by the stench of ammonia”.

The dogs were taken to Woodend to be re-homed.

Fitzpatrick faced 41 charges from Loddon Shire Council for contraventions of the Domestic Animals Act and the Planning and Environment Act. She was not charged with animal cruelty offences.

She was convicted and fined in the Bendigo Magistrates’ Court for the offences, which she appealed on Thursday.

Ms Bower said it was clear Fitzpatrick had failed “absolutely” in her duty of care to the dogs.

“She demonstrated she is not an appropriate person to care for and operate a domestic animals business,” she said.

Fitzpatrick first attempted to gain a permit from Loddon Shire for a 50-dog facility in Lake Marmal in 2012, and required a ruling from the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal before it was accepted. The council initially rejected the proposal.

Loddon Shire officers visited the site in December 2013 and found it was failing to comply with the permit conditions. She was charged with 68 offences, and convicted and fined $40,000 in the Kerang Magistates’ Court in 2015.

The property was sold, and Fitzpatrick purchased a 550-acre property in Bridgewater to establish another puppy farm. The court heard the dogs were not removed after the conviction in 2015, and remained in Fitzpatrick’s care.

She has spent $200,000 establishing the facility in Bridgewater, which does not have a permit. The court heard her brother planned to apply for a permit to operate the puppy farm.

Defence counsel James Anderson said the affects of drought in the area from 2013 to 2015 meant she was unable to build the facilities to the required standards, and the care of the dogs suffered as a result.

“If she had her time again, she would never have gotten into this position, or she would have given the dogs to a home,” he said.

“She’s built a $200,000 facility at Bridgewater which she can’t use, run or work in.”

The permit for the facility lapsed in June 2016 and no permit has since been submitted to Loddon Shire Council.

Judge Paul Lacava said Fitzpatrick’s conduct was a “serious example of what are serious offences”.

“Dogs of various breeds were living in what can only be described as atrocious conditions,” he said.

“She over-committed herself, and as a result the animals were left in atrocious conditions.

“I have wondered whether I should increase the penalty.”

Fitzpatrick was convicted and fined $45,000, and ordered to pay $13,206 in court costs.

She was also banned from owning dogs and operating a domestic animal business for 10 years.