'Gentle' dog starved so badly his bones poked through his skin

A starving bulldog that was so thin his bones protruded through his skin was dumped on the streets of Knowsley. "Gentle" four-year-old Dennis was desperately hungry - and wolfed down so much food he gained 10kg in just a few weeks.

He was picked up as a stray by Knowsley Council in October and handed over to the care of Carla Lane Animals in Need in Melling. Charity trustee Jane McGee said: "He was very neglected, very malnourished, massively underweight. He had open sores on his bottom which were like bedsores. His bones were rubbing on his skin because there was literally no flesh on him.

"The fact that he put on 10kg in three weeks is a lot for a dog, and just shows how badly he was starving. He wasn't ill because he was unwell, he was ill because he was starved. As soon as he started having good care, he started to thrive. He's such a gentle loving boy and loves people even though people have done this to him.

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"Dennis has clearly been cruelly treated and starved. He can't have gotten that thin while he was stray. It's taken a long time for him to get that thin. Somebody has cruelly treated him and then dumped him. It's pure neglect."

Dennis' rescue came just a few weeks after another dog, 18-month-old Destiny, was found tied to a tree in Liverpool with a litter of eight puppies still suckling at her teats. Both Dennis and Destiny are believed to be bully type crossbreeds - "mongrels" bred from lines of several different types of bull dogs.

Unfortunately, Carla Lane has seen a rise in the number of animal cruelty cases across the region, and bully type dogs are some of the most commonly affected dog breeds. The charity has already cared for over 1,000 animals this year, including dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens, sheep, ponies, and donkeys, and has successfully rehomed 860 animals.

Jane said: "These are mongrel dogs and we always take quite a lot of these breeds. They are lovely dogs, but they're bigger dogs. They're more of a market for small dogs. They're easier to rehome. There's more people wanting small dogs than bigger dogs.

"But Staffies, for example, are very popular. Once people have a bully breed they tend to stick with them because they're very loyal. Our supports that have had bully breeds before, when they're ready for another pet they will come back to us and get that sort of breed again."

Luckily for Destiny, both she and her puppies have now found loving homes after being adopted. Dennis, too, has made a full recovery, and is now looking for his forever home.

Jane said: "When we get happy endings, it's worth it. We've taken dogs from awful situations and we have provided them with care to get them back to health and get them homed. So although it is very hard, it's very rewarding.

"These cases used to be unusual and now they're becoming more frequent. You can guess why that might be, it might be the cost of living, but people should reach out to us before they get to that stage. If people are struggling with the financial impact of feeding their dogs, contact us. We can help with that. There is no need for dogs to be starved. I cannot imagine there being a situation where such a thing can be OK."

Carla Lane runes a ‘Bright Eyes’ sponsorship club, a £5 monthly service which helps cover the costs of food, veterinary care, and essentials for animals in its care. For more information, visit www.carlalaneanimalsinneed.co.uk.