Police officer adopts abandoned puppy found in carrier bag while on patrol

When PC Courtney Tongue was handed a bag containing an abandoned cocker spaniel – she instantly fell in love and decided "then and there" that she'd look after her.

She was out on patrol in Walsall town centre when a distressed woman approached her and handed her the one-month-old dog, claiming she could no longer look after her.

PC Tongue brought the dog to Walsall Council's Civic Centre, where officers are based, where she and her colleagues held a vote and decided to name the pup Bella.

Generous officers and staff from the council also contributed to a collection to pay for Bella's vet bills to ensure she was healthy and properly micro-chipped.

Once all the checks were made, PC Tongue was given the green light to take Bella home and give her a happy life.

Click below to see the latest West Midlands headlines

“The woman was very upset when she handed me the bag containing Bella saying she could no longer look after her," she said.

"I have to admit I fell in love with Bella straight away. She was tiny, underweight and hadn’t had a good start in life.

“Bella is doing great. She has put on a lot of weight. She is so loving and very quick to learn. She already knows sit, lay down, stay and some very simple agility groundwork.

“She is a livewire that's for sure. She has bundles of energy now and loves the garden. She loves water as I'm finding out with her water bowl as she tries to swim in it.

"Bella got off to a difficult start in life but now I am doing all I can to ensure the rest of her life is simply a dog’s life.”

How many pets are abandoned in the UK?

In the past few years there has been a steady increase in the number of stray dogs found in the UK, according to the Dogs Trust.

The most up-to-date data the charity has shows an estimated 35,078 dogs were handled by local authorities in 2022/23, an increase of over 7,000 on the previous year.

In the summertime, the RSPCA says it collects an abandoned animal every hour. An estimated 250,000 animals go to rescue centres each year, according to Parliamentary records.

This problem could become even worse as dog charities warn of a surge of requests to take in so-called "pandemic puppies".

An increase of dog ownership during the pandemic saw a number of puppies born and not neutered, some of whom have then gone on to have puppies of their own.

A worker for Hope Rescue, in Llanharan, near Pontyclun, told ITV News how this phenomenon is adding to their already busy workload.

"It's around 150 calls we get from owners a month - wanting to give up their dogs - on top of around 50 stray dogs that come into us every month," she said.

In some cases, people who bought pets during the pandemic may not have been prepared to look after them properly in the first place.

A fifth of "Covid puppy" owners reported eight or more enduring problems, including clinginess and aggression, according to Royal Veterinary College figures.

Meanwhile the number of dog attacks recorded by police in England and Wales rose by more than a third between 2018 and 2022, the Telegraph reports.

The surge in pet ownership during the pandemic combined with the cost of living crisis has created a "perfect storm" of animal welfare issues and abandonments, the RSPCA has warned, with the charity receiving 20,999 reports of abandoned animals last year – 5,000 more than in 2020.

“With the huge demand during Covid, people with no knowledge of animals felt there was a quick buck to be made and started breeding animals," said RSPCA head of public affairs David Bowles. "These pets are often traumatised, with problems that grow more apparent over time.”

Those thinking of adopting a pet can find out more on the RSPCA, Blue Cross, and Dogs Trust websites.