A BARKING dog helped police find a ‘severely decomposed’ body.

A written inquest into the death of Ellesmere Port resident Amanda Rimmer was read aloud at Cheshire Coroner’s Court on Wednesday (July 17).

The 53-year-old was found dead at her home, on Straker Avenue, on July 1 by Cheshire Police officers.

Police attended the address after receiving reports from a neighbour about a dog which had been barking for over two days.

The neighbour said they had not seen Ms Rimmer ‘for some time’.

When officers arrived, they saw the dog barking in the first floor window.

They also noted that the grass was overgrown and that post had built up by the front door.

Officers forced entry to the property through the back door.

In the living room, they found clothes scattered across the floor and a dead bird in a cage along with Ms Rimmer’s body.

Police say they were unable to identify if the body was a man or woman due to the position it was in and because of the state of decomposition.

Summing up, Senior Coroner Jacqueline Devonish said Ms Rimmer was found ‘in a severely decomposed state during a police welfare check’.

As the police had deemed it not to be suspicious, Mrs Devonish ruled an open conclusion.