Missing mum found eaten by her two sausage dogs - as son says pets were 'her life'
11 March 2025, 15:51 | Updated: 12 March 2025, 15:06
A missing mum-of-two was found having been partially eaten by her two pet sausage dogs - with the animals being described by her son as “her life.”
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Jemma Hart was missing for a month when her body was discovered at her home in Swindon - partially devoured by her two pets.
Neighbours reported their concerns to police after she failed to open a text message and one of her dogs was heard whimpering from inside the house.
Ms Hart was often seen walking her dogs and, speaking at the inquest into her death, her son described her love for the two canines.
He said: "She’d had dogs in the past but in 2022 she got a dachshund called Frankie and a year later she got another one called Millie.
"Her house backed onto Lydiard Park where she regularly walked her dogs, and the dogs were her life."
Coroner Ian Singleton told the inquest: "On January 29, Wiltshire Police was contacted by Jemma’s neighbours with concerns that they hadn’t seen her since Christmas.
"Officers went to her home and found her deceased in the living room.
"One of her dogs was also found dead at the scene and the other was in a distressed condition."
Police confirmed Ms Hart’s body had been partially eaten by the dogs.
The coroner concluded Ms Hart’s cause of death was suicide.
Mr Singleton continued: “Jemma lived alone with her two dogs in Swindon and she was estranged from her family.
“Jemma was found in her home with injuries caused by dogs after she died. Her death has been recorded as suicide.”
Ms Hart suffered from health and mobility problems which prevented her from working.
She was known to a local mental health charity but had not been in contact with them for some time.
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