There were four reports of puppy trading in Cumbria during the Coronavirus lockdown.

It comes as the RSPCA revealed it had received 575 reporting relating to the puppy trade in England and Wales between March 23 and October 31 2020.

Puppy imports have soared since the start of the lockdown as demand for puppies rise due to more families spending time at home.

The RSPCA is calling for tougher enforcement on the import of puppies at the borders and also wants the age puppies can imported increased to 24 weeks.

This hopes to crack down on the illicit trade in trafficking dogs in to sell them on to unsuspecting members of the public.

The RSPCA is now warning prospective puppy buyers to watch out or Christmas cons.

This follows as a new survey found that more than one in ten people are planning to buy a puppy this festive season.

The charity is concerned that a record number of dogs could be imported over the following weeks to meet the Christmas demand.

Tougher restrictions to tackle the issue are now being called for by the RSPCA.

Welfare experts are also warning families to look out for breeders and sellers trying to cash-in on the festive rush and failing to take care of their dogs.

RSPCA Chief Executive Chris Sherwood said: “Every year we see a spike in online searches and adverts for puppies in the run-up to Christmas and with lockdown continuing to drive up demand for dogs, we expect this year could see more families looking for puppies than ever before.

“While some of these families will take on loving rescue dogs or buy happy, healthy puppies from responsible breeders, we know that many will unknowingly fall victim to illicit and underground puppy breeders and sellers who prioritise profit over the health and welfare of their dogs."