Spanish police arrested five people on Thursday in connection with caging 270 puppies in distressing conditions and selling them illegally across the peninsular.

The arrests followed a raid on two family-run puppy farms on the outskirts of Madrid, Spanish newspaper El Pais reported. Two of those taken into custody were veterinarians who allegedly helped make the illegal operation seem more legitimate, such as by fitting the dogs with microchips.

The group of dogs rescued were mainly comprised of Chihuahuas and Pomeranians.

Read more: Web Summit 2019: Looking for the next tech top dogs

Officers also discovered two frozen dog corpses wrapped in newspaper. The breeders had cut some of the dogs' vocal cords, possibly to stop them from barking in order to help keep the operation under wraps.

The group had become one of Europe's largest wholesalers of Chihuahuas and Pomeranians, and sold dogs throughout Spain, using social media to promote the operation. Police believe the enterprise made in excess of €2 million ($2.22 million) in profits over the course of more than 10 years.

The dogs, many of which were found caged in cramped suburban basements, are now being taken care of by numerous animal charities.

'Loyal Friends': Artistic depictions of dogs through the ages 'Siegfried' Pugs might have become an inner city dog du jour in recent years, but a century ago the short-muzzled breed was a much-loved pet among the aristocracy, with Queen Victoria in Great Britain having a legendary love for pugs. German Jugendstil-inspired artist Thomas Theodor Heine painted this pug puppy in a plush single-seater in 1921. Siegfried is of course a hit on Instagram.

'Loyal Friends': Artistic depictions of dogs through the ages 'Dog invasion in Café Luitpold' Back in 1894, Thomas Theodor Heine illustrated a graphic canine comedy as a bevy of dogs of diverse breeds invade the opulent Café Luitpold coffee house in Munich. At the time, Heine was an illustrator for the satirical Munich magazine "Simplicissimus," where he employed a Jugendstil graphic style popularized by the likes of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Dogs were often on the menu.

'Loyal Friends': Artistic depictions of dogs through the ages 'Big Dog in a Big City' This was part of a series taken by Amit Elkayam, an Israeli photographer based in New York City, of a Great Dane named Hendrix (after Jimi Hendrix) who lives in New York with its owner, Kristina Justice. As "The New Yorker" magazine wrote of the series: "Hendrix takes on an almost human quality ... gathering to blow out candles on a birthday cake or primping for a night out."

'Loyal Friends': Artistic depictions of dogs through the ages 'Catherine the Great's favorite dog' The Russian Tsar Catherine the Great was also a great dog lover, especially of Italian greyhounds, with this companion canine (said to be called Zemira) allegedly her favorite. It was created in 1766 by the iconic German sculptor Johann Joachim Kändler — the most important modeler for the leading Meissen porcelain manufactory — based on a drawing sent to him from Moscow.

'Loyal Friends': Artistic depictions of dogs through the ages 'Hercules and Cerberus' In Greek mythology, Cerberus is the three-headed hound from hell that guards the entrance to the Hades underworld. In a bid for immortality, Hercules manages to subdue and kidnaps the fierce, multi-headed canine for a night before returning him to the gates of hell. The classical terracotta sculpture by Roman Anton Boos is from 1779 and helped establish the German artist's growing artistic renown.

'Loyal Friends': Artistic depictions of dogs through the ages 'Poor dog, rich dog' This work painted in 1850-60 in Kingston upon Hull by the English artist Richard Dodd Widdas, and styled after another work by French portrait and animal painter, Alfred de Dreux (also known for "Pug Dog in an Armchair"), shows how dogs have also often reflected the class position of their owners.

'Loyal Friends': Artistic depictions of dogs through the ages 'Hunting dog' The Dutch sculptor Hubert Gerhard created this bronze over 400 years ago in 1589. It depicts a hunting dog that might be related to a Weimaraner, a breed traditionally used by European royalty to hunt game. Though it was especially embraced in the early 1800s by the German aristocracy to hunt deer, wolves or boars, the breed is said to date to the 13th century and is related to the Bloodhound.

'Loyal Friends': Artistic depictions of dogs through the ages 'August Sabac el Cher with dog' This early 1869 photograph of a man with a svelte dog in Nice, in what was then Italy, depicts August Sabac el Cher, an Afro-German who was "given" to Prince Albert of Prussia when he was in Egypt as a boy. Taken by Numa Blanc, official photographer of the court of Wilhelm I, we might assume that August was enjoying the company of a Borzoi, or Russian wolfhound, then popular with the royals. Author: Stuart Braun



Each evening at 1830 UTC, DW's editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here.