These two dogs were among nine – eight poodle-crossbreed puppies and their mother – abandoned in locations around Winchester, Hampshire, and struggling to stand under the weight of their own coats.

It took rescuers around three hours to shave each dog, and so terrified were the animals of being touched that vets fear they may have been beaten by their owners.

Matt Southcott, 50, a construction worker from Upham, was one of the horrified residents who raised the alarm after seeing what looked like a bundle of rags at the side of the road as he drove to work.

He found two animals stuck in brambles, and said: ‘I couldn’t tell if they were sheep or dogs. You couldn’t see their faces. They looked so badly matted and injured. I have never seen an animal in that state.’

The puppies, aged around one, have been given the names Fay, Mavis, Martha, Justin, Wills, Kate, Maria and Dave by rescuers. Their mother, thought to be aged eight, has been called Sian.

Vet Martha Edwards said Sian had to be sedated while her fur was cut off, adding: ‘She had stones trapped between her paw pads which had obviously been there for some time. It is disgusting. I have never seen a dog in this condition before.’ An animal welfare expert said yesterday it was likely the nine dogs had been kept in ‘unlivable’ conditions for their whole lives before being ditched ‘with no concern for their welfare’.

Dave Griffiths, Winchester City Council’s senior animal welfare officer, added: ‘They were terrified. The standard poodle of this size weighs about 25kg (4st) and when we clipped their coat the fur weighed 12kg (2st).’

An investigation is now under way and police, the RSPCA and council chiefs are appealing for help to find those responsible.

A council spokesman said: ‘The dogs were abandoned on Tuesday evening. We are keen to hear from anyone who heard or saw anything. All the dogs belong to the same litter and we believe there was just one owner.’

An RSPCA spokesman said: ‘We would ask anyone with any information about these dogs to call our inspectorate line on 0300 123 8018.’

(dailymail.co.uk)