An animal rescue centre has seen traffic jams in nearby roads after animal lovers rushed to donate their duvets to dogs waiting to be rehomed.

It comes after Hillside Animal Sanctuary based on Hall Lane in Norwich asked people to donate their used duvets and blankets to keep their 45 rescue dogs warm, but the appeal saw donors "queuing out the door".

Wendy Valentine, 71, who founded the sanctuary in 1995 estimated that more than 100 people had been to rescue centres in Frettenham and West Runton to donate after Thursday’s Facebook message had seen around 900 shares

She said: “We’ve usually got a good stock of donated bedding but recently we’ve had so much rain.

“The dogs go out and we use towels to dry them off but there’s only so much you can do and we have to change the bedding more often.

“We just ran very low and advertised on Facebook and in the paper and we’ve had people queueing up outside with donated bedding.”

Hillside Animal Sanctuary’s post on Facebook, read: “We have become in urgent need of old bedding.

“If you live locally and have any old or spare (non-feather) duvets or blankets, our dogs would be so grateful for them to snuggle up into during the winter.”

Ms Valentine said the generosity of people would make a big difference to the dogs' comfort during the winter months.

She added: “John, who works with me, he looked at the CCTV camera and you could see people queueing outside the door,.

“At one point we had a traffic jam outside from people bringing the bedding.

“They’ve got their plastic beds … but put the duvets on and it just makes them cosy and comfy and warm.

“It’s just nice and cuddly for them.”

If you can donate a duvet or blanket, Hillside has asked for them to be taken either their Frettenham or West Runton sanctuaries.

The office at Frettenham is open from 9am to 9pm, while West Runton is open between 7am to 6pm.