Berkshire animal cruelty hotspot revealed
The RSPCA highlights the issue as it launches the campaign 'Cancel Out Cruelty'
Last updated 9th Jul 2021
The RSPCA reveals Reading was one of the charity's cruelty 'hotspots' last year
Over 100 incidents referring to compaints about intentional harm were received by the charity last year and more than 1,000 calls over the past five years.
Last summer, more than 4 thousand calls were answered about intentional cruelty across the country.
The statisitics which can be seen on an interactive map have been released as the charity launches a new campaign in July, their busiest month.
Dermot Murphy, head of RSPCA animal rescue teams, said:
“We always sadly see a rise in cruelty during the Summer months. As well as more people being out and about in the longer sunny days, seeing and reporting abuse, we feel there are a number of factors which contribute to this rise.
“Unfortunately, the hot summer days can lead to more people drinking alcohol in the sun which can be a factor in causing violence. There could also be boredom during the long holidays and more pressures at home - when the whole family is on holiday from school and work, existing difficulties in the home can be magnified. During these hot months, calls to our cruelty line rise, putting more pressure on our already stretched frontline rescue teams.
“Police forces reported a rise in domestic violence last year during lockdown and we are concerned that similar pressures which led to this rise may also have impacted on more cruelty to animals behind closed doors during the pandemic.
“The past year has seen a reportedly huge rise in pet ownership* and we know most people would not dream of harming an animal. However, we are concerned that, as we come out of lockdown and people return to their jobs outside the home or suffer financial pressures, we will see more animals suffer if their owners find themselves unable to cope.
“We are urging people in Berkshire to support our campaign to Cancel Out Cruelty so we can all work together to end cruelty towards animals.
“We urge anyone who wants to report animal cruelty to us to call our hotline on 0300 1234 999.”