BRITAIN’S fattest dog — a border collie known as Bopper the Whopper — is ready to be rehomed after shedding 1½st.

The 12-year-old was almost 8st when he ­waddled into a dog shelter in November.

Now, after going on a crash diet, he is fit to move out, although he still has half his excess weight to lose.

Shelter staff are looking for a home nearby so they can keep an eye on him.

Deputy manager Ruth Rickard said: “He’s such a loving dog and he deserves to be the centre of someone's life.”

Bopper was rescued by the RSPCA when his owners became too ill to look after him properly.

He was twice the size he should have been when he arrived at Gables Farm Dogs and Cats Home in Plymouth.

HALFWAY TO HIS TARGET

Staff dubbed him Britain's fattest dog and his story won him fans around the world, including Radio 1 DJ Greg James, who introduced him to listeners in his Live Lounge.

Bopper was so big he did not fit comfortably in a kennel and had to move into Ruth’s spare room.

He is about halfway to his 4st target weight and his new owner would need to keep up his special diet, she said.

Ruth thinks it will take three months for Bopper to reach his ideal weight.

Staff said he would settle best in a quiet home without cats but he could live with children and older dogs. Any potential owners would need to visit him at the shelter for weeks to build up a bond.

Bopper was about 22lb heavier than eight-year-old collie-cross Hattie the Fatty, another hefty hound the ­shelter looked after.

She ballooned to 6st on a diet of hamburgers and made headlines for her huge frame.

Hattie was rehomed after losing half her body weight.

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