A SENIOR vet who helped treat an abandoned dog covered in horrific dog bites has said it was the worst experience of her 40 year career.

The nine-month-old Golden Retriever, christened Hope by her rescuers, was brought in to Marlow Vets in Chepstow at 1am on the morning of Wednesday, May 23, after being found cowering under a bush on Sedbury Lane by passers-by.

Once at the vets, it became obvious the severely underweight dog was covered in what vets say were “gaping dog bites”, the newest of which was at least two weeks old.

Hope has since been treated and is recovering in a foster home, with vets hopeful she will make a full recovery.

Senior Vet Caroline Marlow told the Argus the incident had really upset her staff, and that she hoped never to see anything like that ever again.

Ms Marlow said: “The police rang at 1am on Wednesday morning and one of my colleagues, Paige Hunter, went out to see the dog.

“She had been picked up by three boys who found her cowering under a hedge on Sedbury Lane.

“They thought she was a sheep to begin with, but they picked her up and were just wonderful about the whole thing. They were so determined to get treatment for her, they were even thinking of taking her to a human hospital if they couldn’t find a vet.

“The dog was in a dreadful state. She was covered in what looked like enormous dog bites. Some of the wounds were at least six inches long, and that’s not an exaggeration.

“The newest wound was just gaping, and it had been there for a couple of weeks at least. Some of the older wounds were about two months old.

“We think they are dog bites, but we don’t know how she got them really. We’ve tried to contact the RSPCA and we’re hoping they will get involved soon.

“We tidied her up and our wonderful nurses spent hours bathing her.

“They were distraught when she came in. They had never seen anything like it.

“The poor little thing was trying to get closer to the other dogs in the kennels for support. It’s just awful really. We’re all very upset by it.

“I’ve been a vet for 40 years and I’ve never seen a dog in that condition, and nor would I ever hope to again.

“We shared the pictures online in the hope that somebody would recognise her because we think she was dumped or abandoned at some point.

“We haven’t heard anything yet, but we are really touched by the responses we’ve been getting.”