“This is outrageous. Somebody did this to the dog and he was left suffering as a result,” said Jemima Harrison who was preparing to find a loving home for the Llwellin setter, christened Lewis.

Lewis, who had been wandering the streets of Belturbet in Co Cavan earlier this summer, was brought into the Cavan dog pound by the dog warden.

He was not claimed by anyone so the Cavan-based Lily’s Dog Rescue planned to find him a home in England.

When his time was up at the pound, Carole Mansfield from Lily’s Dog Rescue fostered Lewis and it became apparent to her that there was something wrong with him.

His head tilted to one side and he would walk in circles; he did respond to affection and would wag his tail.

“We thought he might have a very bad ear infection,” said Ms Mansfield. “But I knew it was something else and the vets couldn’t work out if he could even hear us.”

Carole explained the situation to Jemima Harrison of the UK-based Black Retriever X Rescue and they decided to take him to UCD Veterinary Hospital in Dublin.

It was here that a CT scan was done and revealed there were 17 pellets in his head.