MORE than 1,000 animals have been abandoned in Cheshire in the last 19 months - at a rate of almost two a day.

In 2021, the RSPCA received 758 reports of abandoned pets in the county, followed by 341 reports between January and July this year.

Nationally, the number of animals is also on the rise with a 17 per cent increase from 2020 to 2021 and a 24 per cent increase in 2022.

A total of 38,087 abandonment reports were made to the charity’s cruelty line last year - an average of more than 3,000 reports a month, 104 a day or four abandoned animals every hour.

The RSPCA fears a huge rise in pet ownership during the pandemic, coupled with the cost of living crisis putting a strain on people’s finances, means even more animals are being given up this year.

The animal welfare charity has released the stark and heart-breaking figures as part of its Cancel Out Cruelty summer campaign which aims to raise funds to keep its rescue teams on the frontline saving animals in desperate need of help as well as raise awareness about how we can all work together to stop cruelty for good.

Northwich Guardian:

Dermot Murphy, chief inspectorate officer at the RSPCA, said: "The idea of putting your cat in a cat carrier and taking them to a secluded spot in the woods before walking away, or chucking your dog out of the car and driving off leaving them desperately running behind the vehicle, is absolutely unthinkable and heartbreaking to most pet owners - but sadly we are seeing animals callously abandoned like this every single day. 

“We understand that sometimes the unexpected can happen - the pandemic and cost of living crisis proved that - but there is never an excuse to abandon an animal.

"There are always other options for anyone who has fallen on hard times and can no longer afford to keep their pet."

One such incident in Cheshire saw two neglected dogs were found dumped at the side of a country road on July 19 - one of the hottest days of the year.

The two terrier type dogs, believed to be mum and son, were found by a couple driving along a country lane near Macclesfield.

Northwich Guardian: The dogs found near MacclesfieldThe dogs found near Macclesfield

They were both underweight, with skin conditions, flea infestations and one has a fractured leg and a severely injured eye which will have to be removed.

Inspector Caren Goodman-James took the dogs into the care of the Macclesfield and district branch of the RSPCA where they are being fostered as the mum may need further surgery including a leg amputation. She is also blind in one eye due to a severe infection. 

The person who dumped the dogs has not been found.

Dogs were the most abandoned pet nationally with 14,462 reports of dumped dogs made to the RSPCA last year.

Cats were the second most abandoned pet with 10,051 reports of cats being callously dumped in 2021.

There were also 3,363 abandoned exotic pets reported to the RSPCA including 1,455 fish and 685 snakes.

To help support the RSPCA, visit: rspca.org.uk/stopcruelty