For the eight new arrivals at a Norfolk animal sanctuary this weekend, the journey to find a safe and loving home was finally nearing an end.

Since January, Hillside Animal Sanctuary, Frettenham has taken in 60 stray dogs from Romania and has so far managed to rehome more than 40 of them in Norfolk.

There are estimated to be about three million stray dogs in Romania and a lack of government action has meant people are taking the problem into their own hands.

John Watson, of Hillside, said: 'Dogs are trapped in wire traps and almost cut in half. They have stones thrown at them and hot water poured on them.

'Dogs are thought of as vermin unfortunately and that is how a lot of people there treat them.'

The plight of Romania's dogs has been close to the sanctuary's heart ever since a Romanian colleague informed them of the cruelty, but strict quarantine laws prevented them from taking action.

In January, a change in the law meant that dogs, cats and ferrets are no longer required to spend six months in quarantine when they enter the UK from an EU country.

Under the new law, the dogs now only need to be micro-chipped, vaccinated, treated for tape-worm, have an EU pet passport and travel with an approved company to enter the UK.

It costs Hillside between �200 and �300 per dog to meet the requirements, and any further veterinary costs are covered by the sanctuary.

The eight kennels for the Romanian dogs were kindly donated to the sanctuary and Mr Watson said that, despite everything the dogs have been through, they are all 'so friendly and trusting'.

If you are interested in adopting one of the dogs or wish to make a donation, call the sanctuary on 01603 736200.