Dog nursing six newborn puppies found abandoned and cruelly chained to gate without food and water
Officials are looking for information regarding a dog that was found nursing her six newborn puppies while tied to a gate in a field near Elphin, Co. Roscommon, Ireland.
The dog, which is of a lurcher breed, was found by a member of the public, who quickly alerted its plight to the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA), and the Garda Síochána, the police service of the country, according to a press release.
The dog and her puppies were both transported to the ISPCA National Animal Center in Longford for urgent veterinary assessment, and luckily, appeared to be unhurt. Officials said the animals were cold and hungry, but none of them had any health issues.
It is unclear how long the dogs had been left in the field, and they are currently being closely monitored by medical professionals in ISPCA care.
Speaking about the incident, ISPCA Centre Manager Hugh O’Toole said, "Leaving a young dog only two years old tied up without water, food or shelter most definitely put her along with her young puppies’ lives at risk. We are urging pet owners to spay or neuter their pets as early as possible to reduce the high number of unwanted animals."
"I don’t understand how anyone can think it is okay to leave a dog tied to a gate to nurse her puppies," he added. "With the recent level of rainfall and cold weather this week, the outcome could have been very different and I’m happy we were alerted so we could help them."
He said the dog was scanned for a chip to trace her owner, but that they found she was not microchipped despite it being a legal requirement in the country.
"Our Centres’ are constantly full to capacity and with very limited resources, we sometimes have had to use private boarding kennels to help the number of animals waiting to come in, once space becomes available," he said. "It can also take time to find good responsible homes for the many animals in our care."
For now, ISPCA officials are taking care of the dog, who they named Emmy Lou, and her six puppies, Billy Ray, Dixie, Dolly, Dotty, June, and Patsy. They will remain in the organization's care until January when they will be old enough to be given away to forever homes.
Anybody with information about the dog has been advised to contact the ISPCA National Animal Cruelty Helpline on 1890 515 515 or report it online on the organization's website here.