Three tiny, neglected puppies were brought into The Mayhew Animal Home on Boxing Day after being found dumped in a box and left for dead by the side of a road.

The young, defenceless puppies, aged just a few weeks old, were left out in the cold and rain on Boxing Day with only a box for shelter. Found by the side of the road in Watford Rise, North London, the puppies including one boy and two girls, were abandoned in a state of neglect.

All three puppies were found with a severe lice infection and were covered in flea eggs. The poor little boy unfortunately had alopecia over most of his body and had a severely swollen stomach, which was most likely caused by worms.

Luckily the puppies were found quickly by a Barnet Dog Warden, who took the youngsters home for food and warmth before bringing them to us.

Mayhew staff named the girls Sky and Pearl and the little boy has been named Leo. All three puppies were promptly attended to by The Mayhew’s vet team and cleaned up, given flea treatments and settled into a quiet kennel with plenty of food, water and warmth to help make them feel safe and secure. Leo was  also given fluids and antibiotics along with his wormer.

The puppies brightened up during their care at The Mayhew, and started to show their individual personalities. Little boy Leo is such a dude and loves to run about and play with his squishy toys. Lovable girl Sky is the liveliest and cheekiest pup of the bunch, who is always on the move and always looking to see what everyone else is doing. Beautiful puppy Pearl is the most laid back pup of the bunch, though she does love to play with her brother and sister.

Animal Welfare Officer at The Mayhew Animal Home, Tania Mazzoni, said: “Since arriving at our kennels Sky, Pearl and Leo  perked up a lot, so we had our fingers crossed that they would make a full recovery.”

“We’re just so glad that the puppies were found in time and weren’t left out in the harsh weather for too long. It’s worrying, especially with all the recent bad weather, that someone might not have got to them until it was too late.”

“Unfortunately we see a lot of abandoned animals all year round, and sadly it’s possible that these could have been unsold Christmas puppies and were dumped. Last month we launched our Give A Pet A Chance campaign to try to educate people about responsible pet ownership and thus avoid cases such as this one.”

The Mayhew Animal Home’s Animal Welfare Officers find and rescue hundreds of abandoned and neglected cats and dogs every year. ThankfullyPearl, Sky and Leo have all now been reserved so they will be going to loving forever homes soon.

Watch the pups