More than 80 dogs were rescued from the stinking, squalid house

Dozens of springer spaniels rescued from a squalid Doncaster house are now enjoying life with their new families.

84 dogs were rescued from “appalling” conditions at a house in Tickhill that was caked in faeces in urine.

The dogs have been rehomed across the UK. | Iconic

placeholder image — The dogs have been rehomed across the UK. | Iconic

Nine RSPCA officers, along with the police and local authority, were involved in removing the animals from the property in Tickhill in April last year after concerns had been raised about welfare issues at the address.

Many of the rooms were covered from floor to ceiling in faeces and dirt several inches thick. The charity said numbers had rapidly spiralled because none of the dogs - 80 Springer Spaniels and four Patterdale Terriers - had been neutered.

Joanna Baldwin answered the RSPCA’s call for more fosterers after the charity’s Southport, Ormskirk & District Branch took in seven of the spaniels, all of whom found new homes.

They included pregnant Darcy, who gave birth to five healthy puppies at the branch’s animal centre in New Cut Lane.

“Darcy was a brilliant mum who was still nursing her litter of newborns when I first met her,” said Mrs Baldwin. “I visited her about half a dozen times before she finally came home with me a month after she’d finished raising her little ones.

All of the animals were rescued from squalor at a house in Tickhill. | Iconic

“To start with she would circle and pace for hours and it took about six months for her full personality to come through. She’s definitely still a work in progress but I’d describe her as stoic, she just gets on with it.

“Weekly training sessions and having the company of our other dog, Lola, have been a huge confidence booster for her.

“Darcy loves to run, although she never goes very far from me, and if she’s not racing around she’ll be on the sofa. We’ve had our challenges; she still struggles a bit with unfamiliar dogs, and she isn’t a fan of the hoover.

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“Her tail was the last little bit of her body to turn completely white after we finally got rid of the urine staining from her previous home. But she’s come so far - she’s so affectionate and a joy to be around.”

Polly, who was only three months old at the time, was one of the youngest dogs to be rescued from the house.

She arrived at the RSPCA’s Hull & East Riding Branch along with four other spaniels - Spring, Autumn, Cloud and Summer - who were also successfully rehomed by the centre in Clough Road.

Lisa Marchant, Senior Administrator at the branch, who adopted Polly, said: “I had a big spaniel-shaped hole in my heart after losing my previous dog. When one of my colleagues said five spaniels had arrived from a large incident I was almost too nervous to go and have a look.

“Polly came over to me in the kennel straight away and it’s moments like that when you relate to dogs you’ve loved and lost.

“I would describe Polly as high on life, everything is wonderful to her. She’s such a smart girl and is absolutely bonkers for a ball. She’s brilliant with my children, our cat, Joy, and everyone who meets her.

“She loves her walks and her hikes, we’ve climbed Pen-y-ghent this year and she really was in her element.

“The yellow urine staining on her white tail and paws took a little while to go - it was the last reminder to me of what she’d been through. She’s come such a long way and is definitely making up for lost time now.”