RSPCA appealing for information after a puppy was found abandoned in Seaham

The dog, thought to be a Chihuahua-type and said to have been no bigger than the size of a hand, was found crawling out of a bush along the Bull Fields track, alongside the A19 behind West Lea Estate in Seaham at around 2pm on Monday, August 9.

It is reported that she was barely breathing and struggling to stand so a dog-walker who found the puppy took it to a vet but sadly she couldn’t be saved.

RSPCA inspector Cathy Maddison said: “There was no way that in this poor dog’s state she would have made her own way to where she was found, so we believe that she was dumped.

“Thankfully she was found by a kind member of the public who attempted to give her some food and took her to a vet.

“It’s heartbreaking that she wasn’t able to be saved. I’m hoping someone might know or suspect where she came from as I’m worried about other pups from the same litter and their welfare.

“I’m urging anyone who has any information to get in touch with us in complete confidence on 0300 123 8018.

"It’s very important that we find out if her litter is okay and also to find the person who cruelly abandoned a very poorly puppy in their hour of need.”

The charity’s officers investigated 403 incidents of deliberate cruelty towards dogs across the North East in 2020 – with 169 incidents in County Durham alone.

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