A PREGNANT spaniel who had been used for breeding for years was abandoned in a street just hours before she gave birth to a litter of puppies.

Cassie, who is thought to be over eight years old, had been found abandoned in Basildon.

Just hours after she was rescued, she gave birth to eight pups, but two sadly didn't make it.

Due to Cassie having been used as a breeding bitch for so many years, her broken body could not provide the milk for the pups - and they are now being hand-reared.

Echo:

Staff at the branch made the difficult decision to separate Cassie from her pups a few days later because she had thickened itchy skin which was causing her bite and scratch herself.

Cassie is almost blind in one eye and her belly was almost touching the floor as a result of having been bred from so often.

Kathy Butler, Basildon branch manager, said: “We sought advice from our vet and sadly the best option for the pups and also for Cassie was for her to be separated from them. The pups just wouldn’t have survived if not.

Echo:

“Fortunately, a staff member at a neighbouring branch has taken on hand-feeding these pups - who are now just over two weeks old.

“Cassie was beside herself without the pups, losing them has not been easy for her, but it meant we could treat her and it was the only answer to help all of these beautiful dogs.

The branch is now searching for an adopter as she continues her recovery.

Kathy added: “We do need to find her adopter who is local to us - as she will need on-going vet treatment for her skin.

“She is such a wonderful, sweet girl it is just heart-wrenching to see her in such a broken condition.

“We hope that there is someone out there in the local community who could adopt her and help her to recover from her ordeal, so that one day she can have the perfect family home that she really does deserve.”