Someone left 20 Poodle Cross puppies in a crate during a layover

Heartless (Photo: RSPCA)

A cruel owner has left a crate full of 20 puppies in a parking lot in Essex.

Fortunately, the puppies were spotted by someone out for a walk in the Blackmore area and called the RSPCA on Friday, July 29.

Inspector Sian Ridley and Animal Rescue Officer Enola Evans attended the call where they found one of the puppies was very weak.

She was kept warm by a member of the public before Enola took over, keeping her safe on her way to the vets with the other puppies.

Unfortunately, the puppy was not strong enough and the vets made the heartbreaking decision to put her to sleep.

The other 19 puppies, all of whom weighed less than a bag of sugar at the time, were thankfully in much better health.

They are all between six and eight weeks old.

The puppies – of which there are 14 males and five females – are thought to come from different litters.

While the staff is not positive they believe the bigger cockapoos can be and the smaller jackapoos.

Not all puppies survived (Photo: RSPCA)
This is how they were found (Picture: RSPCA)
Those little faces are too much (Picture: RSPCA)

Sian said: ‘When I was told how many puppies there were, I actually thought a mistake had been made – I couldn’t believe that someone had left 20 puppies behind.

“They were all quite scared and timid when we arrived, and it was just heartbreaking to see them all huddled together in one cage – they looked pathetic.”

Staff initially feared the poor puppies might have the deadly parvovirus, but the surviving puppies were all in decent health considering the condition they were found in.

They were treated with fluids containing glucose over the weekend but still need to be monitored.

Poor Babies (Photo: RSPCA)
Sadly, the ailing female pup didn’t survive (Picture: RSPCA)

Many of the puppies have already been offered homes by the staff at the veterinary practice where they have been cared for, and all are currently in foster care.

They have been given alphabetical names and are called: Albert, Boris, Casper, Dylon, Elenor, Freddie, Guinevere, Hank, Irene, Jeremiah, Kaleb, Luna, Morris, Neville, Oliver, Peter, Quinton, Rupert and Saffron.

The charity is asking that the public not call centers regarding rehoming at this time, as the puppies still need some extra care, and the RSPCA needs those phone lines to deal with emergencies.

‘When I was told how many puppies there were, I actually thought a mistake had been made’ (Photo: RSPCA)
All puppies are being cared for and many have been offered homes by vet staff (Photo: RSPCA)

“I want to say a huge thank you to all the passers-by who stayed to help these puppies and also the vets who were able to care for the puppies for a weekend at such short notice,” said Sian.

“It’s hard to figure out where these come from. They may have come from a puppy farm but they were friendly, clean and flea free so they may not have been in a barn with no human contact.

‘It’s also unusual for such a large number of puppies to be male, and I wonder if that was the reason they were abandoned – because they wouldn’t be useful for breeding or would be harder to sell.

‘We were concerned that they had had parvo and that was the reason they had been abandoned, but that is not the case and other than some have worms they all seem very healthy.

“I’d love to hear from someone who knows who is responsible for leaving these puppies behind in such an irresponsible manner. They were so young and vulnerable that it’s likely someone just pulled into the parking lot, took them out of the car and then left them behind – so I’d like to speak to anyone who has a suspicious vehicle in the area on Friday.

“Times are tough right now, but it’s so irresponsible and cruel to abandon little puppies like this. Please, please never abandon your pet, but ask for help before it gets so desperate.’

Anyone who has seen anything suspicious in the area or has information that could assist the RSPCA’s investigation should confidentially contact the charity’s professional line on 0300 123 8018.

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