Janine Marion of Terara pleaded guilty to 14 charges of aggravated animal cruelty against eight cats and 12 dogs in her care when she appeared in Nowra Local Court this week.

The charges were laid after RSPCA inspectors and Shoalhaven City Council rangers responded to complaints of animal cruelty and went to Marion's house on November 30 last year.

During their investigations, they saw two poodle crossbreeds on short, tangled tethers and two other poodle crossbreeds tethered to a car, all without access to water.

The court heard eight cats were discovered squashed inside three cages inside the car.

Urine and faeces covered the car's upholstery, and none of the cats had access to water.

Magistrate Michael Stoddart heard that Marion tried to remove the cat cages from the vehicle before being cautioned by the inspectors and asked to move away.

When she refused, police were called.

The four poodle crossbreeds, four cattle crossbreed pups, a Maltese crossbreed pup and a silky terrier crossbreed were seized from other parts of the property.

These animals also had no access to food or water.

Inspection of the interior of the house revealed a further two poodle crossbreed pups in a carry cage. Both pups were underweight and were immediately seized.

Veterinary examination of the animals found several of them to be severely underweight and six tested positive for hookworm.

In sentencing, Mr Stoddart said Marion's conduct towards the animals had been "disgraceful and shameful" and their condition "stomach churning".

He placed Marion on a two-year good behaviour bond, prohibited her from owning animals for five years and instructed her to report to police for fingerprinting.

She was ordered to pay $28,000 in fines and $83,243.58 in professional fees.