A negligent father kept his children and pets in filthy home with the remains of several decaying dead dogs, a court has heard.

The man, in his late 30s, had been keeping his children at a house in Bolton in conditions described by a social worker as “the worst case of neglect” she had ever seen, until he was discovered in March last year.

Bolton Crown Court heard how police arrived at the man’s house during a search for one of his children who had gone missing the day before.

Andrew Macintosh, prosecuting, said: “When officers arrived the defendant was stood in the garden, he said he had dogs inside and that they were aggressive and had taken over the house.”

He added: “He said that two of them had died and he had left them in the charge of the children.”

Mr Macintosh told the court how when police eventually got inside the house they were confronted with a “toxic” smell and found that cushions had been used as “stepping stones” over the filth covering the floor.

The floors were smeared with dog faeces and rubbish, officers then found two cages in the front room.

Mr Macintosh said: “In one of those cages was the skull of a dead dog, in the other were the remains of another.”

The court heard how social service deemed the home “not suitable for animals or any form of human life” with one social worker describing it as “one of the worst cases of neglect I have ever seen.”

Another two dead dogs were found on the kitchen floor, which the RSCPA found were “severely emaciated” with the ribcages visible.

Three still living dogs were also at the home, while the man’s missing son was later found and he and his sibling were both taken away from their father.

The father, who in order to protect the identity of his children cannot be named for legal reasons, was taken to Bolton police station where he admitted to neglecting his children.

He first pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to animals when brought before the magistrates court and then pleaded guilty to two counts of child neglect and a single count of misusing electricity when brought to the crown court last December.

Nicholas Ross, defending, argued that the man was entitled to credit for having admitted his offences and told the court the man “understands the gravity and the unusual nature of the crimes to which he’s pleaded guilty.”

He added: “He wishes me to say that he wishes he could change the situation now.

“He says that with hindsight, he should have done considerably more.”

But Mr Ross said that his client accepted that his actions were, in his own terms, “horrific.”

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The Honorary Recorder for Bolton Judge Martin Walsh accepted the man’s guilty pleas but said that he too was shocked by what he had heard.

He said: “The photographs I have seen defy description.”

Addressing the defendant, he added: “It seems to be that the public interest is best served by your working with the community health team.”

Judge Walsh sentenced the man to a three-year community order with a 12-month mental health treatment order and 50 rehabilitation activity requirement days.

He also ruled that the man be banned from keeping or participating in the care of animals until further order, which he can apply to have lifted after seven years.