TILLY the sheepdog was abandoned in a supermarket car park with just a notice hanging around her neck pleading for a new owner.

The Border Collie was left tied up outside Safeway in Harwood on Wednesday night.

The notice simply read: "Give me a good home".

She was discovered by a couple at 10pm as they called at the store to visit friends working there.

Attached to the note was a telephone number . . . and when the couple rang it, they were told by a woman who answered that she was unable to keep Tilly - thought to be about four years old - because she had began to bother her horses.

But now the sad story has a happy ending.

The couple who discovered her could not bare to leave her there and took her to their Heaton home for the night - and have now decided to look after her.

The new owner - who did not want to be named - said: "She was just beautiful and I couldn't leave her there. I had a dog for 10 years, but she died six months ago, so we are more than happy to take Tilly in. She was very good overnight and seems a lovely dog - very mild tempered.

"I just told the previous owners that I would look after her as best I could."

Bolton dog control officer Jenny Taylor said: "We don't come across this very often, but it has been known before for dogs to be left with notes.

"Tilly appears to have been well looked after and is in fairly good condition. I would guess that she has been worked previously.

"She does not seem to be microchipped, so our job now is to try to get in touch with the owner. But Tilly will be staying with the couple who found her for now.

"We cannot condone what the owner has done but, on the other hand, at least they did not just kick her out to stray and possibly cause a road traffic accident.

"People should think more before getting a dog. It is a huge responsibility."