Puppy found underweight and covered in fleas in Cornwall dies after being abandoned on Christmas Eve

A puppy found covered in fleas and heavily underweight died after being abandoned in Cornwall on Christmas Eve.

National Animal Welfare Trust (NAWT) were alerted to two puppies and their mother found neglected in an undisclosed location within the Duchy.

They were cold, hungry, underweight, and in need of urgent care.

Found in a horrific condition they were covered in flees with stomachs swollen and worms.

They were also anaemic to the extent that they couldn't lift their heads to feed.

In the early hours of Christmas Eve, one of the puppies called Murphy died after being too weak to carry on.

A second dog, Frankie, was also in a critical condition and was rushed to the vets to be put on emergency IV fluids whilst being monitored for the afternoon.

Frankie and Murphy's mum received continuous care from the team at NAWT.

Frankie was able to recover and returned to the charity's care looking brighter and ready to be with its mum.

Volunteers at the charity continued to monitor the two through the day and night, feeding them every two hours through Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and into the week.

Frankie has already found a new home but whilst continuing to get better has already made friends with the kittens in the cattery - even though they are bigger than him.

Following Frankie and Murphy's story, the charity is now urging those struggling with the upkeep of their pets to look to look for help instead of choosing to abandon them.

Pet owners in need of support can call the charity on 01736 756005 for advice and help.