Poor animal conditions left this poor pup, bought from a Kingston pet shop, in need of £2,500 worth of medical attention.

Sophie Goodale's boss bought Burnie, a six-and-a-half month old West Highland Terrier, from Petsville in Richmond Road, Kingston, for her four months ago.

But as soon as Burnie got home he was suffering from diarrhoea and quickly deteriorated to the point where he howled and was sick every time he tried to eat.

Vets at the Canonbury Veterinary Practice diagnosed Burnie with Isopora infection - indicative of overcrowding, poor hygiene and poor animal husbandry.

Miss Goodale, 26, from west London, made a complaint to shop owner Barry Boys, who has since shelled out £2,495 to cover Burnie's medical bills.

Burnie has had an operation but vets are still unable to determine if he will make a fully recovery. Miss Goodale said: "The shop should be shut down selling on ill pets like that. Mr Boys offered to swap my dog for another one I was shocked. It's an awful lot of money but it's not just about that, I just want the best for poor Burnie, and any other pups from the same litter who may be suffering.

"He seems a little better though now, bless him."

Mr Boys, who has been trading for 35 years, said: "The money was a goodwill gesture and not an admission of liability. There are another two puppies from the same litter which are fine. I wouldn't want to sell any ill animals.

"The puppy was vaccinated, had been checked over by vets and was okay when he left the shop. She (Miss Goodale) wasn't prepared to get the money from her insurance so we wrote out a full cheque for the vets fees. Miss Goodale said Burnie was not insured, which was why she initially had to pay the full costs herself.

Mr Boys said the shop had regular inspections from the council and RSPCA and had 30 dogs, with double the amount of recommended space for them.

And he admitted offering Miss Goodale another dog as part of the store's guarantee promise. A spokesman for the RSPCA said: "People shouldn't buy pets from pet shops as they don't know where they have been bred. It's very difficult for us to prosecute pet shops because we can't prove where the poor husbandry took place."

rclifford@london.newsquest.co.uk