CCTV footage has been released by the RSPCA of two young women tying up and abandoning a severely emaciated dog outside a pub in freezing conditions.
The women, one believed to be heavily pregnant, were caught on camera leaving the "starving" male Rottweiler tied up outside the Crown Hotel in Littlehampton, West Sussex, last Wednesday night.
The abandoned dog weighed far less than it should, according to the RSPCA
An RSPCA inspector described the animal, later named Hero by pub staff, as "one of the thinnest" dogs he had seen as the charity appealed for help to catch the pair.
The dog weighed less than half his normal body weight when he was abandoned by the two women who both wore winter coats as they left the animal in the cold.
Inspector Tony Pritchard, who rescued the animal and took him to a vets where he is being cared for, said: "This poor dog was completely emaciated, one of the thinnest dogs I have seen.
"A male adult Rottweiler should weigh 50-60 kilos. This dog weighed just 22 kilos. He was simply starving and now all he wants to do is eat."
The RSPCA appealed for anyone who recognises the women to call 0300 1234 999