SICK thieves killed a Bolton family's pet puppy as they burgled their home.

Zed was a 14-week-old rare and valuable Dogue de Bordeaux dog. The Kennel Club says there are only 12 dogs of the same breed registered in this country.

He was in the kitchen of Lynne Walsh and Lee Hough's Breightmet home when burglars walked in through an unlocked back door on Friday night.

Lee had only gone out for 10 minutes but when he returned he found an air rifle and cash had been stolen from the living room and Zed lying on the kitchen floor struggling to breathe.

He rushed Zed - the same breed as the dog used in the hit Tom Hanks film "Turner and Hooch" - to a vet but the puppy died on the way there.

The vet told the family that Zed appeared to have been suffocated.

Heartbroken Lynne, 29, said she bought Zed for £2,000 only five weeks ago to be a companion for her elderly Rottweiler, Zasha.

She had gone to visit friends for the evening and did not know about the tragedy until 31-year-old Lee returned from the vet's.

She said the puppy, which was less than 2ft tall, was so friendly he would not have tried to attack the intruders or have provoked them into hurting him.

"He was so soft it is unreal. He didn't really have a bark or a growl in him. He wouldn't have been a threat to anyone," she said.

"I can't understand why why they have done this. They are definitely sick or have some kind of mental illness."

Lee and Lynne are determined to catch the people responsible for Zed's death and have offered a £500 reward for information given to the police which leads to their conviction.

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