Turtle dies after pair dumped in Dudley pub's skip

One of the turtles has died after being recovered from the skip

A turtle has died after being dumped in a skip in a pub car park in Dudley.

Two turtles were recovered after the skip was collected from The Old Bull's Head in Gornal on Monday.

One of the turtles had a "significantly cracked shell" and she died from her injuries on Thursday.

An animal rescue team in Dudley called the incident "one of the most heartbreaking cases of neglect and cruelty we have seen".

Proteus Reptile Trust in Sedgley took the female map turtles in on Wednesday and had been treating the pair for their injuries.

Commenting on the turtle who died, volunteers said they were "desperate for her to pull through" but the "trauma from the injury was sadly too much for her".

"Just when we think we've seen the extent of the neglect and cruelty animals can endure due to neglectful owners, we meet these poor turtles."

The turtle who died had sustained a significant injury to her shell

Both animals had been covered by heavy rubbish which had been thrown into the skip.

Proteus Reptile Trust said the pair had been "thrown away like a piece of rubbish" and "left to die".

"This is not acceptable for any animal, but these turtles have such complex needs they could not possibly survive had the lovely people at the pub not discovered them," a spokesperson said.

They added that like many other rescue centres across the country they were very busy at the moment, but had to step in to help this pair.

The two turtles were dumped in a skip on a pub car park

The team were contacted by the owners of The Old Bull's Head, who were made aware of the turtles by the team who recovered the skip.

The landlord and landlady, Martin Cadman and Jo Selman, took the turtles in until they found a rescue centre who could help.

Ms Selman said: "It's disgusting. We're going to do a fundraiser in the pub to raise money for Proteus, because we saw how many reptiles they have that people have just dumped."

Ms Selman said the skip had been in the car park for four weeks and that people walking past would leave items such as scooters in it as the skip was near a busy road.

Proteus Reptile Trust is continuing to care for the surviving turtle and said it would do its best to ensure a full recovery.

The RSPCA has warned of a "winter crisis" of people abandoning their pets due to the cost of living crisis.