A litter of malnourished puppies found locked and ‘roasting alive’ inside a bike trailer near Bracknell have been adopted.

Thames Valley Police discovered six Springer Spaniel’s and their mother without water, food or daylight inside the trailer on July 30, during the summer heatwave, the force said.

Vets worked against the odds to bring the dogs back to health and on Friday, September 23, they were adopted by a security and detection dogs agency.

A Thames Valley Police spokesperson said: “Following the arrest of a male in Crowthorne for unrelated reasons, officers from Bracknell and Wokingham ICR Team 5 made a truly awful discovery.

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Bracknell News: Springer Spaniels before leaving the police stationSpringer Spaniels before leaving the police station (Image: Thames Valley Police)

“Locked away in a bike trailer was this litter of six Springer Spaniel puppies and their mother. With no access to daylight, fresh air, food or water, they were literally roasting alive in the extreme heat with the bike trailer acting like a greenhouse in the summer heatwave.”

“Thanks to the amazing work, love and care from the vets, all of the dogs were brought back to health quickly.

“Whereas it was extremely likely they would not have survived had they not been found when they were.

“Nicknamed “Fortuitous Litter” by the Sgt, meaning happening by a lucky chance rather than intention, it really was luck they were discovered before it was too late.”

Bracknell News: Thames Valley Police officer says goodbye to rescued puppiesThames Valley Police officer says goodbye to rescued puppies (Image: Thames Valley Police)

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The owner was arrested for animal welfare offences and with the investigation ongoing, the dogs were seized and put under the protection of Thames Valley Police.

Two weeks ago, the owner legally signed over the dogs to the force. Now they will be trained in search and rescue, explosive detection and drugs detection in Kent.

“Once trained their skills will be used by a number of services across the UK and it is our hope that they will have a bright future helping to protect the public,” said the spokesperson.