Six-legged abandoned dog undergoes surgery to have extra limbs removed

A dog that was born with six legs has undergone surgery to have its two extra legs removed by trained specialists.

Ariel, a black cocker spaniel, was born with two additional limbs which caused her previous owners to reject her as a pup.

Aged just 11 weeks old, Ariel was abandoned at a car park outside a B&M in Pembroke in September, and was taken in by local vets at Greenacres Rescue in Haverfordwest.

The dog was born with several other birth defects which left her with six legs, one kidney and two vulvas.

A fundraising campaign was set up by members of the public to help pay for an operation to remove the limbs and bring Ariel back to normality.

In total, over £15,000 was raised to help pay for the surgery, which was eventually carried out the Small Animal Hospital at Langford Vets, owned by the University of Bristol.

Thankfully for Ariel, the operation was a complete success and she is now recovering ahead of being given back to her foster family.

After she makes a full recovery in Pembroke, the search will soon begin to find Ariel a "forever home" and give her a life of normalcy.

Speaking about the procedure, hospital director Vicki Black said that Ariel's newfound freedom could only come about through teamwork.

"Ariel was a complicated little dog whose care required close collaboration across a number of our specialist led teams including Orthopaedics, Soft Tissue Surgery, Anaesthesia and Radiology," Black said.

She continued: "We are delighted such a lovely dog has recovered from her surgery well. As part of the University of Bristol we are a centre committed to career long learning and are proud to innovate and treat pets like Ariel. Ariel deservedly has many devoted supporters, it was a great pleasure to treat her and work with Greenacres Rescue."

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