A man has been banned from keeping animals after drowning his guinea pigs in the bath.

David Ellis held the animals under water because he no longer wanted them.

Ellis, 57, from Millfield Court, Courtwick Lane, near Littlehampton, appeared at Worthing Magistrates’ Court yesterday and was banned for life from keeping any pets except for goldfish, which he was deemed not to be a risk to.

RSPCA inspector Tony Pritchard said: “We had a phone call basically saying that two guinea pigs had been found in a bag in a communal bin.

“The weather had been dry but they were soaking. We had a post-mortem carried out which confirmed they had drowned.

Ellis told the charity he drowned his pets because he didn’t want them anymore.

Mr Pritchard said: “This is obviously unacceptable behaviour.

The guinea pigs were made to suffer horribly.

“There are numerous ways to rehome pets and if you really can’t they can be taken to a vet and put down humanely.”

As well as being banned from keeping animals for life, Ellis was given a conditional discharge for one year and must pay court costs for the proceedings against him.

To report cruelty to animals call the RSPCA anonymously on 0300 123499.