When a concerned member of the public saw a tiny pomeranian wandering the streets of Wembley late at night, covered in urine, dirt and faeces, they quickly stopped their car to take a closer look.

Three-year-old Summer was in obvious and significant distress, and her fur was matted and covered in filth. She had no collar or lead, and seemed to be lost.

The man who found her carefully picked Summer up and drove her straight to Mayhew, where our emergency night staff admitted her and checked her over. We discovered that in addition to her dirty and matted fur, poor Summer was riddled with fleas, and could not stop scratching.

During her full intake examination the next day, little Summer displayed nervous and scared behaviour, including whining and cowering away. To make her more comfortable, our Head of Kennels gently clipped away her smelly and matted fur to remove every trace of urine, dirt and faeces.

We then gave Summer flea and worm treatment, and settled her back down in a cosy warm kennel where she could enjoy a well-earned rest. Given Summer’s appearance, behaviour, and lack of microchip or collar, she seems to have been starved of affection and in distress for quite some time.

Our kennels team soon noticed that Summer was also suffering from severe diarrhoea, and seemed reluctant to eat. Our vets are currently conducting ongoing tests to try and pinpoint the cause of her upset, and we hope to have the results back shortly.

In the meantime, we are ensuring that Summer receives extra care, love and attention from our Kennels team, who are working hard to try to bring her out of her shell.

A member of Mayhew’s night staff said: “ I told her she was a good girl, and she instantly seemed to calm down – she wagged her tail at me, and so I gave her some biscuits. She them became comfortable around me, and laid down next to me. When I started stroking her, she snuggled right into my leg.”

We very much hope that Summer will one day be ready to find a safe and stable home, with a loving forever family who will help her put her troubled past behind her. For now, we will continue to look after Summer and ensure she is as comfortable as possible whilst we investigate her ongoing medical issues.

We will keep you posted on Summer’s progress, so keep an eye out for her updates on the website and across all our social channels.