A PUPPY found in an abandoned fridge has been given a new lease of life after being adopted by a Doffcocker family.

German shepherd Elsa was found dumped in the cold in scrubland in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, at just six-weeks-old.

It is thought she had been abandoned for up to 24 hours when she was discovered.

RSPCA staff believe she may have been left because she has deformities to her front legs.

The RSPCA nursed her back to health and she is the latest addition to Paul and Suzanne Marsden’s family after they offered to adopt her.

They had already temporarily fostered the poor pup.

Bolton’s RSPCA branch manager, Julie Ashcroft, heard Elsa needed a home and got in touch with Mr Marsden, who she knew had previously owned German Shepherds.

The 35-year-old HGV mechanic said: “We had to get our German shepherd Sadie put down last year so we had been looking out for another dog then Elsa appeared. We saw a picture and she was a cute, fluffy thing. She had bad legs so we kept her fed and rested and she was alright.

“We fell in love with her temperament and her spirit to fight what she has been through.”

Elsa, now aged 13 weeks, no longer has any problems with her front legs after previously struggling to walk.

The couple’s children Charlie, aged 10, and Freya, aged six, love their new pet, who is the first puppy they have cared for.

Mrs Ashcroft said: “Elsa has been through an ordeal. We have to thank Mr and Mrs Marsden as they fostered her when we didn’t know what the outcome would be with her legs. They fostered her and fell in love with her. It has been a happy ending.

“When Elsa was rescued she was very quiet as she was too young to be taken away from her mum. She slept a lot when she first came to the RSCPA but now she has trebled in size it’s amazing. She is a monkey now.”

She said her new owners have started taking her to obedience classes and she is becoming a Bolton star because of what she has overcome.

People can learn about adopted a rescue cat or dog at rspca.org.uk