The Massachusetts Appeals Court this week upheld the conviction of a woman whose miniature dachshund starved to death, prosecutors said.

Tasha Waller, 36, of Lynn, was convicted in September 2014 in Lynn District Court of one count of animal cruelty, the Essex district attorney’s office said.

On Jan. 23, 2013, Waller brought her dog, Arthur, to the Massachusetts Veterinary Referral Hospital, prosecutors said. Arthur was emaciated and unresponsive.

Prosecutors said a veterinarian provided emergency medical treatment, but then authorized euthanasia. Waller told the veterinarian that Arthur “had always been thin and had lost some more weight in the week prior to his death.’’

In court, the veterinarian said it would typically take four to six weeks for an animal to go from a normal body weight to emaciated. A second veterinarian who performed a necropsy on Arthur said he died of severe malnourishment.

The necropsy revealed that Arthur had no body fat and no disease that would have caused rapid weight loss.

The trial court gave Waller a suspended sentence of 2½ years in jail, and put her on probation for five years. She was ordered to perform 500 hours of community service, to not own pets or animals, and to submit to random inspections while she is on probation.

The Appeals Court upheld most terms of her probation, but amended one, saying she did not have to submit to random inspections of her home unless the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or the probation department had “reasonable suspicion’’ of a violation.

In her appeal, Waller argued that the animal cruelty statute was vague because it did not specify which animals are protected. She also argued the veterinarians could not claim knowledge about Arthur’s weight or death because they had not examined him before.

The court rejected both of those arguments, saying all dogs are animals and thus fall under the animal cruelty statute, and that the veterinarians’ claims were not speculative and were backed up by the necropsy.

Sarah M. Unger, Waller’s attorney, did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

Olivia Quintana can be reached at olivia.quintana@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @oliviasquintana.