AN investigation for witnesses has been launched after the bodies of two dead puppies were found dumped inside a clothes recycling bin in County Durham.
Two puppies - believed to be Dachshunds aged around four to five-months-old - were found wrapped in bags and dumped in the clothes recycling bin in Morrisons car park, in Bishop Auckland.
The shocking discovery was made after a charity volunteer went to collect clothes donations and found the animals wrapped in bags.
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It’s believed that the dogs were left at some point at the start of March.
In the aftermath of the incident, an RSPCA investigation has been launched, with the animal charity’s inspector, Gemma Lynch, appealing for witnesses and information in connection with the incident.
Mrs Lynch said: “A Salvation Army collection driver who went to collect donations from the Morrisons Foundation clothes bin opened the door and made the shocking discovery inside, finding one dead puppy wrapped up in a bag.
“The second puppy was later found. One was a male tan-coloured pup and the other a female tri-colour and we suspect their bodies were dumped between March 1 and 4.
“There were no obvious signs to suggest their cause of death but vets who examined them said parvovirus is a possibility.”
Parvo is a highly contagious virus that can be lethal in young dogs and, sadly, is something the RSPCA sees linked with poor breeding, puppy farms and the trafficking of dogs from overseas.
The RSPCA is investigating what happened to the puppies and whether they died in suspicious circumstances, or whether they suffered unnecessarily before their deaths.
Anyone with information about where they may have come from can contact the RSPCA inspector appeal line on 0300 123 8018.
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