AN animal hospital near Wellington has helped to give a dog from war-torn Afghanistan a new start in life.

Kringle, a three-year-old Anatolian shepherd mixed breed, was left orphaned after his mother was killed in a road accident in the Afghan capital, Kabul.

Charity NOWZAD, set up to relieve the suffering of animals in Afghanistan, stepped in and brought him back to England where they found him a new home and funded specialist treatment for his deformed front right leg.

Pauline Holmes-Brown, from Paignton, gave Kringle a new home while Cave Veterinary Specialists, near West Buckland in Somerset, gave the young dog a new lease of life.

Cave’s European specialist in soft tissue surgery, Malcolm Jack, successfully carried out the operation to tackle the deformity.

The specialists said the transformation has been spectacular but Ms Holmes-Brown admitted there had been tough times over the last 18 months, as Kringle made the transition from feral street dog to much-loved family pet.

She said: “When we went to pick Kringle up from Heathrow in October 2018 he was so scared the staff could not get a lead on him, so he was brought out to us in a crate on a trolley.

“The next few weeks were challenging - his behaviour was unpredictable, and it seemed that he was not accepting my son Ben as his family.

“Then, around Christmas 2018, Pen Farthing, founder of NOWZAD, and his partner Hannah came to visit Kringle and discuss how we could cope with him and to reassure us we were doing the right thing.

“We also discussed fixing Kringle’s deformed leg, which is when Pen told us about Cave Veterinary Specialist, so soon afterwards we booked a consultation.”

Somerset County Gazette:

OPERATION: 3D images of the jig created to fix his leg

Malcolm said: “Kringle was born suffering from a defect in his right leg, a right angular limb deformity which caused his front foot to protrude at an angle, causing lameness and pain.

“It can happen when bones sitting side by side grow at a different rate.

“The problem was making him lame in his right forelimb and it was obvious to see the deformity in his gait.

“We took CT images which gave us the opportunity to map and build a 3D image of Kringle’s limb, allowing us to plan the most appropriate surgical correction plan.

“We also sent the images to VET3D, a company which specialises in 3D patient-specific surgical systems to see if they could create an internal corrective jig to suit Kringle.

“They could and they did. The jig aiding in a smooth, complication free surgery to be performed with X-rays showing good post-operative alignment of the limb.”

The beloved dog is now almost unrecognisable from the injured canine rescued more than 3,000 miles away.

She added: “We can’t thank Malcolm and Cave enough. Kringle has come on in leaps and bounds and is now living an active, full life.

“He’s chasing squirrels in the woods, loves running across the beach -although he’s not too keen on the water - and is getting on well with obedience training.”

Kringle has also been given a new name - ‘Mr Kringle’ - after becoming a successful dog show champion in the south west.

Ms Holmes-Brown added: “Initially we started taking him to dog shows just for fun and socialising but he quickly became a star.

“He won first in the Best Nowzad Dog 2019 and qualified for the Crossbreed Championship.

“In October 2019 he competed at the LilyBug Fund show and came home with a 2nd for Rescue Dog in Show,

“He also qualified for the Rescue Championship and came first in the Crossbreed Dog in Show and, to top it all off, he was named Champion of Champions at the Cornwall & Devon Crossbreed Championships Final 2019.

“We love him unconditionally, and he’s taught us a lot. He seems so much happier now that he can run and play

“He’s a real star and we are so happy to have been able to help rescue him and give him a happy, forever home.”