Animal lovers have created a shelter for dogs they have saved from terrible conditions in Romania.
Last year, Jennifer Gilbert, 36, from West Hill, Epsom, and Lisa Webster, 40, from Sherwood Park Road, Sutton, travelled to Romania and rescued as many dogs as they could from a filthy shelter in Fundulea near Bucharest.
Two local women had rescued 200 dogs rounded up by dog catchers from a "death camp" but they ran out money and ended up abandoning their own shelter leaving the dogs to "rot in their own mess".
Along with Rachel Welch, Miss Gilbert and Ms Webster have brought about 100 dogs to the UK for adoption and set up their own charity, UK Romanian Dog Rescue.
Now a fellow dog lover has offered them the use of her stables in Guildford, which has been converted into kennels to house the refugees.
Rescue work in Romania
With night lights, hospital flooring, heat lamps, fire alarms and insulation, the dogs will live in luxury and wait to be taken to their "forever homes".
Miss Gilbert is a trained veterinary nurse who has helped with animal rescues in Greece over the past 17 years and carried out rescue work in Thailand, Hong Kong and elsewhere.
She said: "We had 16 dogs arriving on March 27 and we have managed to find homes for eight of them already. We’re hoping we’ll be able to bring over ten dogs per month."
Despite limited time and funds, the women are determined to carry on their good work and Ms Webster is set to live on site in order to provide the daily care for the dogs. Last summer, the Bucharest Court of Appeal effectively suspended a controversial law that says stray dogs should be killed, but the women have said the slaughter continues.
The law, providing for the killing of strays not adopted within a fortnight, came into force in October 2013 after public outcry when a little boy was mauled to death.
Miss Gilbert added: "Humans are cruel and the suffering they have caused these animals in Romania is unbelievable."
The 14 converted stables in Guildford can house 36 dogs.
For more information visit www.ukromaniandogrescue.com/dogs-looking-for-homes.html.
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