West Yorkshire is the worst area for rates of animal cruelty outside London, it has been revealed.

The RSPCA said that 7,920 reports of cruelty were made in our county in 2016 - a number topped only by the capital with 11,812.

However, West Yorkshire also produced the highest rate of successful prosecutions - despite this figure being only a measly 94.

Complaints made to the charity in West Yorkshire included a horrific incident where badgers were reportedly dug out of a sett before dogs were encouraged to attack them.

Huddersfield is no stranger to reports of animal cruelty, with several prosecutions made across Kirklees last year.

Time Line

10 shocking animal cruelty cases

  1. April 2015: Newsome man axes dog to death

    Kevin Dixon, of Dalton, axed an Akita-type dog called Tempa to death after it bit several people including a four-year-old boy – but he claimed he didn’t cause unnecessary suffering because the animal was dead within 10 seconds.

    He was convicted of cruelty and magistrates imposed an 18-week jail sentence suspended for two years.

  2. April 2016: Yobs colour in kittens with permanent marker pen

    Two tiny kittens were nicknamed Smurf and Shrek after cruel yobs ‘coloured in’ their white faces with permanent marker pens.

    Volunteers at a kitten rescue charity were left shocked when police turned up with the four-week-old black and white kittens.

    Smurf’s white bits were inked in blue while Shrek was smeared in green. The kittens were coloured in all over their face and body – even the white tip of their tail.

  3. October 2016: Lockwood cat shot with air gun

    A couple told how their pet cat was lucky to be alive after being shot with an airgun.

    Samuel Wark, 31, and partner Savannah Milnes-Bell, 24, of Lockwood, were worried when long-haired Siberian Forest cat Georgie went missing.

    When she eventually returned she was lame and the couple rushed her to the vets – only for an x-ray to reveal a pellet embedded in her body.

  4. November 2016: Footage emerges of man beating dog with baseball bat

    Sickening footage showed a dog walker appearing to beat his defenceless pet with a rounders bat.

    The video was taken on Sunnymead in Scissett and was shared on social media more than 4,000 times.

    He later issued an apology.

  5. November 2016: Distressed dog found abandoned inside Longwood home

    A dog was forced to sleep on a dirty duvet inside a squalid house, a court heard.

    The distressed Rottweiler was found living amongst its own filth with no food or water.

    The pet’s owner Sarah Thackery failed to attend court to answer three charges under the Animal Welfare Act of failing to ensure the needs of the pet were met.

  6. December 2016: Cat loses eye after it is shot in Highburton

    Six-year-old black and white cat Merlin was shot in Highburton.

    Retired accountant Karen Phillips said she can’t understand why anyone would want to shoot a cat.

    “I can’t believe anyone could be so cruel,” she said. “I felt so distressed when the vet told me what had happened.”

  7. December 2016: Cat called Biggins found in agony

    A cat was found in agony in a house set up as a cannabis factory, a court heard.

    The pet, named Biggins, was unable to walk properly after suffering ingrown claws and bleeding from his diseased face.

    Police discovered the thin animal living in a totally unsuitable environment when they raided the address in Manchester Road, Linthwaite.

  8. December 2016: Up to 100 dead rabbits found in Hade Edge

    A mother walking her children to primary school came across a box containing up to 100 dead rabbits dumped on the pavement.

    Kerry Sykes was with her children, aged seven and eight, on the way to Hade Edge School when she noticed a large box on the pavement on Dunford Road, Hade Edge.

    Believing it to be litter, she tried to pick it up but then noticed it contained a large number of dead rabbits.

  9. January 2017: Donkeys found neglected

    The donkeys and miniature Shetlands were found with hooves so overgrown some couldn’t even walk.

    Malcolm Wood, 66, and his wife, Angela, of Muffit Lane, Gomersal, both pleaded guilty to a number of offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 when they appeared at Kirklees Magistrates Court in Huddersfield.

  10. March 2017: Emaciated dog found shivering and abandoned

    An emaciated dog was found shivering in the pouring rain in a muddy field next to Kirklees.

    The blonde Lurcher, rescued by a member of the public in Gildersome, was appropriately named Rain.

    She was taken to Dogs Trust Leeds’ re-homing centre

One couple from Gomersal were banned from keeping horses and donkeys after Kirklees Magistrates' Court in Huddersfield heard they neglected their donkeys so badly their hooves were overgrown, with some unable to walk.

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The RSPCA were also alerted in December when a Highburton family found their cat had been shot and ended up losing his eye.

Dermot Murphy, of the RSPCA, said: “I believe the figures show that we’re not becoming more cruel, but that people are simply less willing to stand by and do nothing if they think an animal is suffering.”