A rescue dog hurled from a moving van now needs a life-changing leg operation to “free her of pain”.

Bambi was saved by the National Animal Welfare Trust (NAWT) with another dog, a lurcher called Popcorn, after both animals were thrown from a vehicle on a busy Watford road.

Bambi came to the charity filthy and malnourished and with sores “all over her body”.

In addition, she was struggling to walk, and her back legs appeared to be buckling under the pressure.

NAWT feared Bambi had suffered a spinal injury due to being thrown from a van, but later discovered she had lateral luxating patellae - a condition she had since birth where the knee cap rides outside the femoral groove when the knee is flexed.

She will need surgery costing £5,500 to correct the deformity.

NAWT centre manager, Jackie de Friez, said: “We call her the mermaid puppy because her back legs are so deformed they almost make the shape of a tail.”

If the NAWT charity do not help Bambi now, her condition will deteriorate leaving her in unbearable pain.

To help Bambi, visit: https://www.nawt.org.uk/blog/help-bambi-live-pain-free