An unemployed man who converted the downstairs of his home into an illegal dog fighting venue was jailed today for four months.

Adio Clarke, of Holly Road, Handsworth, Birmingham, pleaded guilty at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court to four charges relating to illegal dogs.

The court heard that when police raided 22-year-old Clarke’s home, they found 11 pit bull terriers, all suffering injuries apparently caused by dog fights.

One of the animals, which are banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act, was found to have 157 separate injuries, which an animal welfare expert said were consistent with being caused by dog fighting.

Another dog had suffered a broken pelvis and another had had one ear almost severed.

Nick Sutton, prosecuting, said that because the dogs were held illegally, Clarke was unable to take them to a vet to receive proper treatment for their injuries.

He said Clarke had treated the injuries himself, often inadequately or ineptly, and this had contributed to the dogs’ suffering.

Mr Sutton said: "The tragedy is that these animals have been bred by man for the sole purpose of fighting.

"Through no fault of their own, they find themselves in this appalling situation."

When officers raided Clarke’s home in April last year, they found six pit bulls chained up in the garden, more dogs inside the house and a video showing two young dogs attacking each other in a sparring bout.

Chief Inspector Mike Butcher of the RSPCA’s Special Operations Unit said he was pleased with the four-month sentence, and said it sent out a signal to other dog fighters.

Speaking outside the court, Mr Butcher said: "The RSPCA will pursue anyone who is fighting dogs.

"We found homemade videos in Mr Clarke’s house which showed young dogs being fought.

"This sparring is training for dogs who go on to fight later.

"It is obvious to me that this was part of a large dog fighting enterprise."

Passing sentence, District Judge Neil Davison said the offences were so serious that only a prison sentence was appropriate.

He added that Clarke’s case was aggravated by his previous record for assault, robbery and possession of firearms.

During the hearing, the court saw a homemade video found at Clarke’s address showing two dogs attacking each another, while being urged on by onlookers.

In a separate video clip, a man showed injuries on his hand and foot to the camera, while a voice on the tape said: "Standard pit-bull damage that. Eight-months-old, standard tooth holes."

The court heard RSPCA officers found traces of blood splattered on the walls of Clarke’s home, the downstairs of which had been cleared for use as a dog fighting arena.

At an earlier hearing, Clarke pleaded guilty to two counts of owning an illegal dog, one count of causing unnecessary suffering to a dog and one count of owning a venue used for dog fighting.