MORE than 40 dogs have been removed from an illegal puppy farm in Worcestershire following a swoop by council officers accompanied by police and RSPCA officials.

Armed with a court warrant, licensing officers from Wychavon District Council were joined by West Mercia Police and RSPCA inspectors for the raid on the farm on land near Valley Nurseries, in Pershore Road on the outskirts of Evesham.

They found a number of dogs being kept at the site for breeding and the man advertising dogs for sale, Ian Ashby, did not have a breeder's licence.

It is understood that 44 dogs were removed from the farm and 40 of them were taken to the Dogs Trust in Wickhamford, where they are being cared for. An estimated 40 to 45 dogs are thought to remain on the site.

The RSPCA were back at the farm on Tuesday where they took away at least one more dog as the "voluntary transfer" of dogs from Mr Ashby's care continued.

JR Whippet Rescue volunteer Rachel Surridge, from Herefordshire, was the first to raise the alarm about activities on the site after seeing an advert in a local paper for a range of puppies.

She said: "The advert listed a number of different breeds and said they were from working backgrounds, which set alarm bells ringing. I rang the number and after talking to the man there, it was clear that this was a puppy farm.

"I travelled there with a friend and when we turned up we met the man who he said he would bring the puppies to the gate.

"My friend told him that she wanted the puppy, which looked in good condition, but that she worked nine hours a day. No reputable breeder would sell a puppy to someone who worked for nine hours a day.

"When we mentioned that we wanted to see the parents and were interested in buying more puppies he said he had a lot of puppies.' "We were taken to a derelict old bus, which were his kennels. The conditions were horrendous and the puppies were thin, not emaciated, but thin.

"The floor was very wet with urine and the dogs were in cages that could have been no larger than 2ft 6ins by 2ft 6ins. I would say that there were about 40 to 50 there and he told us that if we didn't like the puppies there he had some more around the back.

"I have been working with dogs for 30 years and this place is certainly the worst I have seen."

The Breeding of Dogs Act 1973 states that "no person shall keep a breeding establishment for dogs except under the authority of a licence granted in accordance with the provisions of the act."

The penalties for breaking this law include a fine and a maximum of three months in jail.

Steve Jorden, head of environmental services at Wychavon District Council, said: "We take this kind of issue very seriously and all agencies are working hard for a positive outcome. We are conducting a wider investigation at the moment and the individual involved is co-operating.

"It is a sensitive issue and for legal reasons we can't divulge any further information at this stage. A further statement will be issued in due course."