What happened to the 82 chihuahaus living under one roof?

The dogs were found in cramped conditions

The RSPCA recently revealed it had been called to a house in Birmingham where 82 chihuahuas were living - "they literally started appearing from everywhere", an inspector said. The BBC has been digging around to find out what became of the pint-sized pooches.

Where were they taken?

It was "extremely difficult," Inspector Herchy Boal said.

"The dogs were not well socialised, the owners weren't able to walk them, so they had a lot of behaviour problems."

The chihuahaus were taken to the charity's Newbrook Farm Hospital for health checks. Some had matted coats and fleas, others had burns.

From there, they were moved to different centres including in Coventry, Leicester and Derby. They were then dispersed even more widely.

"We couldn't have all the dogs in Birmingham, - as lovely as they [chihuahaus] are - that would be all people could look to adopt," Insp Boal said.

Some of the chihuahuas were hiding behind furniture

"It was a long process; we worked a lot with volunteers to get them friendly again.

"You would need an army to deal with that many dogs."

Where are they now?

Emma Marshall, 38, from Redditch, adopted two of the dogs, naming them Taco and Salsa.

"When we saw them, it felt like there were hundreds of them, they were all very excited. We needed one who was good with kids. They brought out Taco; he seemed upset about leaving the others, so we got Salsa too.

"The first few weeks they just slept, I think they'd had such an ordeal.

"They had never been walked, they weren't house trained, but they were very sweet-natured right from the off."

Emma Marshall says she "couldn't imagine her life" without the dogs

Salsa couldn't wag her tail to start with and was very timid, she said.

"I couldn't imagine my life without them now, they're part of the family and are so loving."

Of the rest of the 82 dogs, one had to be put down due to "serious health issues" but all the others were healthy enough to be rehomed.

All of them have new owners, apart from four that were returned to the original owner by the RSPCA, which helped him to renovate and clean his home.

Salsa (left) and Taco have been with Emma Marshall's family for over a year now

How unusual is it to find this many dogs in one home?

James Harris, a vet at White Cross Vets, said the number of dogs in this case was "beyond anything I've ever experienced".

"The most I've seen is 30 to 40 dogs, from breeders getting a bit out of hand, but that's far in excess of what I've experienced - it would be virtually impossible to look after that number [82].

The couple who originally owned the dogs started out with just two. But they did not get them neutered and very soon they had 82.

"Chihuahuas don't usually have large litters, we're talking three to six, usually," Mr Harris added.

"Every dog breeding with another dog is genetically very poor. It sounds like they were mating on their first season, which we don't recommend.

"As a general rule, all bitches should be spayed: they typically live longer, it prevents womb problems, unwanted pregnancies - and the rate of cancer in dogs who aren't spayed is generally higher."

How should you care for a puppy?

• Provide regular and adequate meals

• House train your pet

• Puppies need regular exercise in a safe place

• Keep them clean and comfortable

• Make sure they get veterinary care whenever needed

• Train and socialise them

Source: White Cross Vets