PUPPIES were stolen during a burglary in Runcorn in the early hours of this morning.

Two lilac tan English bulldog pups were taken during the break-in at a house on Whitchurch Way at around 2.30am today, Tuesday.

Cheshire Police’s enquiring into the incident are ‘ongoing’ and officers are urging members of the public with information to come forward.

Detective constable Ciara Murphy said: “The victims in this case have been left absolutely devastated by the loss of their puppies.

“We are committed to doing all that we can to trace the men responsible and have the pets returned to their rightful owners.

“Both of the puppies are male and easily recognisable.

“One of them has a small hole in the roof of his mouth that requires medication, and may require surgery in the future.

“The puppies have also been microchipped and are registered on the national database, making them extremely hard to sell.

“As part of our ongoing enquiries we want to hear from anyone who witnessed anything suspicious in the Whitchurch Way area of Runcorn overnight or believes they have CCTV footage which could be relevant to our investigation.

“The same goes for anyone who thinks they may know the identities of the burglars.

“We also want to speak to anyone who believes they have seen the puppies since they were stolen or has information regarding the pets’ current whereabouts.”

Anyone with information is urged to contact Cheshire Police on 101, quoting incident number IML816073 or to call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.