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A 10-day-old puppy has frozen to death after the roof of an animal shelter was ripped off by Storm Arwen overnight.
Tiny Florence was the smallest puppy at the Many Tears Animal Rescue Centre in Llanelli, South Wales, heartbroken owner Sylvia Van Atta said.
The shelter was battered by Storm Arwen, which has caused chaos across the country, last night and was left without power.
Sylvia said she cuddled Florence as she was the coldest of the pups but just couldn't warm her up as 90mph winds battered the country,
She told Wales Online: "We lost one puppy, Florence, because it was too cold and I couldn't keep it warm and it was failing. She was the smallest there and only ten days old.
"It was really dangerous outside and I couldn't leave them, so I took the coldest one because the others at least had their mum's body heat.
"I put it down my front and I tried to keep it warm. We didn't have any hot water or electricity at all. I just couldn't warm it up."
Sylvia said Florence had been bottle fed by volunteers at the shelter to help supplement her mum's milk.
Tragically, she had only just started to open her eyes and build up her strength.
Sylvia added: "When these dogs come in and they have puppies it's very personal because we don't have that very often.
"That puppy was a very little puppy and we were bottle feeding it to help supplement its mum and kept it going ten days and it started to open its eyes. We were so proud because it was doing so well.
"It's just miserable, it was a life and it was a precious life. It gave you hope and it made you keep working hard. I should be hardened to these things but I'm not. It's very sad.
"I know other people have losses too but this is losses for the animals and it's breaking my heart."
The centre, which Sylvia runs with her husband Bill, looks after more than 100 dogs.
One of the barns and a recently created classroom building, built to teach children about animals, also suffered major structural damage resulting in metal roofing sheets getting ripped off the building.
A coffee morning planned to raise funds for a Shih Tzu that needs a heart operation has also been cancelled due to the damage caused.
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Sylvia added: "It has been the most terrible night ever. We have had no electricity and the most terrible winds – they have ripped our roofs to pieces.
"The classroom we spent so long building has been wrecked, there are metal sheets and they have been flying off like a helicopter. They were flying through the air and could have decapitated us. It was terrifying and dreadful.
"This damage is going to costs thousands to repair. We don't get anywhere, we just start to get right and it all goes wrong, again. It's really hard to keep going. Really, really hard."
Visit here to donate to the shelter's repair costs.
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- Met Office
- Animals
- UK Weather
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