Puppies Hunted for Sport Find New Homes

Four puppies that had been cruelly hunted for sport after being born in a landfill site in Lanarkshire have been found new homes.

Two of the Japanese Akita pups will be homed in Airdrie near where they were found and the other two will go to homes in Falkirk and Glasgow.

The pups; Kaleigh, Zara, Shiloh and Teddy were rescued by North Lanarkshire Council after they heard the pups were being hunted by other dogs and their owners. They will go to their new homes this weekend after being handed into the Scottish SPCA.

Workers at Greengairs landfill site caught the poachers hunting the puppies by using them as live bait for their own dogs.

The two boys and two girl siblings of twelve weeks old were saved by North Lanarkshire Council and then taken to the Scottish SPCA's Animal Rescue and Re-homing centre, Hamilton but then transferred to another SPCA centre in Mellerstain, near Gordon for a rehabilitation and socialisation programme to become familiar with people and other dogs.

For two years the mother of the puppies was thought to be living as a stray at the Greengairs landfill site. Unfortunately, she had to be humanely euthanized as she was deemed to be too dangerous to be re-homed.

Mellerstain's staff said that they had undertaken a "tough" selection process after being overwhelmed with offerings of homes for the puppies. The manager of Mellerstain's centre, Debbie Bottomley explained that, "Before we did the interviews we thought that we wanted only the most experienced people. But then we met some applicants who were not so experienced but who were great with puppies, were very kind and caring and had really done their homework on the breed."

"We are happy that the puppies will be going to good, loving homes."

The centre's assistant manager, Heather Shaw added, "We will be sad to see them go as they are adorable puppies, but we are delighted with the response we have received and that they will be going to good homes."

Report by Joanna and Gina