Man banned from keeping animals after 20 puppies found in back of van die
Police have found new homes for 24 puppies found crammed inside cages in the back of a van on a motorway - but sadly 20 puppies died.
Gloucestershire Police has issued a public thank you to the person who called them when they spotted the van on the M6 in August last year.
When officers pulled the van over, they found 44 malnourished dogs inside.
The driver has now been banned from keeping animals for two years following the incident in Charlton Kings, Cheltenham.
The puppies were between five and eight-weeks-old at the time.
Despite them all receiving emergency veterinary care, 20 of the animals died. The puppies which survived have all been re-homed.
Following the court hearing, DCI Claire Nutland said: "These puppies were all in extremely poor health as they were malnourished and sadly a lot of them were not able to be saved after their unnecessary suffering."
The force says it pursued welfare offences in this case because conditions in the van were unacceptable and "clearly not the right way to transport puppies, which need constant support and care".
DCI Nutland thanked the member of the public who called in with their concerns and urged anyone who sees something suspicious such as this to call police immediately.
She added: "A huge thanks must also go to all those who have helped along the way with veterinary care and behaviour training and I'm extremely happy that the other pups are now thriving in their forever homes."
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