Dogs beaten, tied in a plastic bag and dumped in a river

A Spanish sighthound has incredibly survived being beaten, tied in a plastic bag and dumped in a river after managing to poke its nose out to breathe while the sack was floating in Spain. 

Three dogs, all Spanish sighthounds, were found by two bike riders in the area known as Gil Gomez de Arahal, in the province of Seville, in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia, on 30 June.

Olga Diana, president of the El Amparo del Sur animal protection association, said she had driven there in a car after being called to the scene by the bike riders, whose names have not been revealed.

The riders, she said, 'saw there was a nose coming from one of them (the bags) and the bag was open and the dog ran away but it came back by itself shortly after'.

Olga said volunteers from the association went to the scene and called the police after they found the three dogs, which all had been microchipped and belonged to the same person.

The Spanish Civil Guard confirmed in a press statement that the three dogs had been beaten and placed inside sacks which were then closed with a rope.

The dogs, all sighthounds, were then thrown into the river and only the survivor managed to get its nose out of the bag to breathe.

The Civil Guard confirmed a 60-year-old man who lives in the town of Arahal is being investigated as the alleged perpetrator.

The owner of the dogs, who has not been named, has been asked to give a statement as part of the police investigation.

The sighthound which survived was taken to the Moron de la Frontera veterinary clinic where vets found it had suffered a serious blow to the head, injuries to its legs and further injuries to its nose caused by an improvised muzzle.

The dog named Gabi was also infected with parasites and Olga said the pooch is recovering properly but 'it is scared of men and avoids them'.

She said they are looking to have the dog officially given to the association so they can help find it a new family.