Dog left in cold to spend Christmas with new family

Nina was found huddled outside in the cold and dirt, the RSPCA said

A dog left in the cold and dirt that was rescued last winter will spend Christmas with a new family.

Nina, an American Bulldog, was "worryingly skinny" when she was found unattended at a property in Nottingham, 10 days before Christmas 2023.

It was clear the two-year-old had been living outside without shelter "for some time", the RSPCA said.

This Christmas, Nina will be with her new owner Alison Southgate, from Suffolk, who "knew she was the one" at their first meeting.

Nina was among five dogs that the animal charity said it removed from the same home last winter after the owners "agreed that they couldn't care for them properly".

She and one of the other dogs, Ava, were taken to one of the charity's animal centres in Cambridgeshire.

RSPCA inspector Deb Scotcher said: "Nina was worryingly skinny with overgrown nails, sore skin and filthy fur."

She added that the pup looked as though she had "given up".

In April, after Nina's "physical and mental transformation", Ms Southgate had came across the dog on the RSPCA website and "fell in love" with her.

The 65-year-old, who had been looking for a dog to join her family, then visited the kennels where Nina was staying with her son Jareth, 34.

She said: "We all went to meet her at the kennels but she came straight over to me first, gave me a big kiss and I cried - I knew she was the one."

The RSPCA said Nina was nervous and unsure, with staff believing she had never lived in a home before.

Nina is now happy in her new home with Ms Southgate and her son

Ms Southgate, who nicknamed the dog Nini, said: "When we first brought Nini home we let her have the run of the whole house so she could explore and see everything - she didn't know what the TV was.

"But now she's really made herself at home.

"She absolutely loves Jareth and gets so excited when he comes home, they cuddle on the floor for hours."

She added: "I'm so excited to have Nini with us this Christmas, it'll make it such a magical day.

"She'll get her own stocking and lots of doggy presents to enjoy on the day - and I'm sure she'll get a special dinner too, although I expect all she'll really want to do is snooze under the tree all day."