Frightened young lambs left in Sunderland gardens

It has not been possible to reunite the animals with their mother, the RSPCA said

"Frightened" days-old lambs have been found dumped in residential gardens, the RSPCA has said.

The animal charity said it was aware of two incidents in Sunderland in recent weeks, and social media posts suggested there had been a third.

The organisation warned the animals' lives had been put in danger as they were too young to be away from their mother.

As there are no farms in the area, it has not been possible to reunite them.

'Some kind of joke'

A householder found a cold and shivering lamb in their enclosed garden in Scruton Avenue on 16 May at about 06:00 BST, the RSPCA said.

It still had a dried umbilical cord attached.

A similar incident had been reported to Northumbria Police on 13 May with a distressed animal head-butting a fence in an attempt to get out of a garden on Forbes Terrace.

The animals could not have found their way into the gardens on their own, according to the charity

RSPCA animal rescue officer Heather Wade said: "These little ones were only days old so were very vulnerable and would have been frightened to be away from their mum.

"I know the lambs could not have wandered into the gardens as they were enclosed so it suggests someone has deliberately done this and I have no idea why. Maybe they think it is some kind of joke.

"We are not sure where they have come from as there are no nearby farms so we could not reunite them with their mum and they are now being hand-reared by a specialist."

Anyone with information is asked to contact the RSPCA.