A kennel assistant has spoken of his heartbreak when he cares for fragile puppies who have been transported to this country in horrendous conditions to be sold on.

Phil Carter, of Deal, said his workplace, a dog boarding kennels in Ringwould, gets inundated with around 50 puppies a month, the most popular being British bulldogs and pugs.

By law, foreign puppy sellers have to stop “for rest” for 48 hours when they reach the UK and it is surrounding kennels in the district that take on the quarantined puppies temporarily.

Mr Carter said some of the puppies come after days of travel – covered in their own faeces, emaciated, dehydrated, and some are even too young to be away from their mothers.

“I have been looking after animals for 10 years, and I do not expect to be taking in puppies that are nearly dead" - Phil Carter

He said: “I have been looking after animals for 10 years, and I do not expect to be taking in puppies that are nearly dead.

“I have seen things that will give people nightmares. It is traumatic and it’s heartbreaking.”

He added the number is constantly increasing, and feels the Port of Dover has its “hands tied” when small, feeble dogs enter through the borders because of the “lax laws” on dog passports.

Those taking animals in or out of the country must wait 21 days from the date of a rabies vaccination before travelling.

Puppies should exceed 15 weeks of age before they are separated from their mother.

His former colleague Nicola Hall said some of the puppies that reached the kennel were no bigger than her hand making it hard to believe that all legal requirements are being met.

Ms Hall, of Cranleigh Drive, Whitfield, said that the situation has been getting worse for more than two years, and is a reason why she left her job.

She said: “I couldn’t cope with working in a kennels when it is something I disagree with.

“There are all of these dogs coming into our country – the stray kennels are going to be overrun soon.”

Mr Carter feels that people’s perceptions on buying cheap puppies needs to change in order to buck the trade.

Foreign sellers are believed to buy the puppies from puppy farmers overseas for as little as £40 each, making huge profits when they reach the UK.

He continued: “People don’t realise how serious it is that’s why it has got to the stage where we want to talk about it.”