An abandoned dog gave birth to a litter of puppies just hours after being dumped in the street.
Cassie, a golden spaniel, was discovered scared and alone on a street in Basildon, Essex, by the RSPCA.
She was taken to their Essex South, Southend and District branch where she gave birth to eight puppies, two of which sadly died.
Cassie, who is thought to be about eight-years-old, is almost blind in one eye and her belly was almost touching the floor as a result of having been bred from so often, reports EssexLive.
The RSPCA believes Cassie has been used by puppy farmers as a breeding bitch for many years, but her "broken" body couldn't support her pups and she has had to be separated from them.
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Cassie's thickened skin was causing her to self trauma, and she couldn't stay still long enough to feed her pups due to her biting and scratching herself.
Vets could do little to treat her without harming the pups, and with her milk slowing down the pups were losing weight.
The pups are now being hand-reared and Cassie has been put up for adoption.
Kathy Butcher, branch manager in Basildon, 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; Cassie's teats were extremely enlarged with thickened skin and she wasn't producing enough milk for them.
"Fortunately a staff member at a neighbouring branch has taken on hand-feeding these pups - who are now just over a week 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.
"She's been in the care of a wonderful fosterer who has other animals, and we now have a fosterer in a one on one situation. We do need to find her adopter who is local to us - as she will need ongoing vet treatment for her skin.
"She is such a wonderful sweet girl, it's just heart-wrenching to see her in such a broken condition."
Ms Butcher said that while Cassie has been used as a breeding bitch all her life, it was clear that she "has never been shown love or affection", or the "basic care a dog deserves", and that she wasn't house trained.
Despite everything they've been through, the RSPCA believes that Cassie and her pups will have a bright future.
Ms Butcher added: "Cassie is loved by us all and is so adorable and affectionate. 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.
"Her pups are all doing very well and we are so grateful to our colleagues for taking them under their wing.
"They've doubled in weight and a lovely Dachshund, Bear, is now nurturing them too and he cleans them up and lays with them. The pups will have a bright future and we just hope we can do the same for Cassie."
To apply to adopt Cassie, click here .
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