She was due to face a second trial over a further six animal cruelty charges in November, but the magistrate found her guilty in her absence after she failed to attend the hearing.

A warrant was issued for her arrest in November. She failed to appear at another sentencing hearing in March this year.

Magistrate Mark Semmens told the court in November that imprisonment would be the “appropriate” penalty, but that he could not sentence Ryan in her absence. He also made an order allowing the RSPCA to seize all remaining animals.

The RSPCA South Australia chief inspector, Andrea Lewis, told the Guardian that organisation was working with police in South Australia and New Zealand to investigate the possibility of extraditing Ryan to face charges.

“It’s deeply concerning that Ms Ryan chose not to attend court to finalise the judicial process in this very serious matter, and appears instead now to be living in New Zealand,” she said.

“Nonetheless, the magistrate’s verdict in this milestone case exemplifies what are – and aren’t – acceptable living conditions for animals.”

Lewis said the RSPCA received a public tip-off in January that Ryan had moved to New Zealand, taking about 20 dogs and 20 horses with her. About 20 more dogs were seized by the RSPCA, and a number of horses and dogs are understood to have been sold by Ryan prior to her leaving the country.

RSPCA SA is now in contact with its animal welfare counterpart across the Tasman, SPCA New Zealand.

“I have spoken to them and provided them with quite a lot of information about the cruelty cases in Australia as well as information regarding what we know about her whereabouts and her activities in New Zealand,” Lewis said.

The RSPCA inspected the Baroota property on 3 May 2017, after receiving a tip-off from a member of the public.

At that stage, the RSPCA says, there were 75 dogs and puppies, 45 horses, seven sheep and 25 chickens on the property. Animal welfare inspectors seized 27 dogs – four German shepherds and 23 pomeranians – and more than 20 chickens. In finding Ryan guilty on 27 counts of animal cruelty in March 2020, Semmens said footage showing the condition that one of the German shepherds was in was “disturbing, to say the least”, and the need for veterinary care was “patently obvious to anyone viewing the footage”.

Two of the German shepherds had to be euthanised, the RSPCA said.

The pomeranians, allegedly part of a puppy farm, were kept in “squalid, dirty, improperly maintained and unkempt conditions” that were “inappropriate and inadequate for the pomeranian dogs to live in, let alone any dogs at all”.

The RSPCA inspected the property again in May 2019 and seized five horses and one pomeranian. At that time there were 86 dogs and 56 horses on the property.

One of the horses collapsed and died a short time after being seized, and RSPCA vets said the horse was 140kg underweight. The remaining four were rehabilitated. Ryan was found guilty in absentia at a hearing over six charges relating to those animals.

Lewis said she hoped the RSPCA would be able to secure an extradition order.

“We would love to see the matter finalised to its full capacity,” she said. “But even without her spending time in jail, what this case does is set out the standards as to what is unacceptable around animal breeding facilities.”

Lewis said she hoped the case would prompt people looking to buy a new animal to do their due diligence about the breeder, “and not just be swayed by a cute picture”.

Puppy farming is still legal in South Australia, but new standards for breeding facilities were introduced in 2017. Victoria introduced laws banning puppy and kitten farming in 2017. Western Australia was due to pass similar laws before parliament was prorogued for the state election.