A CAT has been found with serious injuries in a wood - shortly after a man with a dog was heard shouting ‘kill it, kill it’ and seen wiping blood away from his dog’s mouth.

A horrified member of the public contacted the RSPCA after witnessing the incident at around 8.30am on Sunday, in Sedgemoor Road, in the Banksfield area of Middlesbrough.

The cat was found collapsed in woods behind the road, alert but very distressed, shortly afterwards. An RSPCA inspector took it to a vet, but sadly it passed away while the vet was examining it.

RSPCA inspector Clare Wilson, who is investigating, said: “The cat was in a very bad way when he was found and his injuries were consistent with being attacked by dogs.

“A member of the public heard a man shouting ‘kill it, kill it’, before seeing him come out of the woods with a bull lurcher-type dog - similar in size to a greyhound but stockier - who had blood around their mouth.

The man, in his 30s or early 40s and wearing a brown/khaki farmer-style coat, was seen wiping the blood away.

“She then saw four or five younger males - likely teenagers - coming out of the woods, each with a dog on a lead. The older male was looking around and telling the younger males to ‘ssh’, which made her suspicious. The group then walked away.

“The woman who witnessed this went into the wood and found the cat, who had suffered serious injuries and was covered in blood.”

The cat - a neutered black shorthair male - was microchipped, however the contact details on the microchip are out of date and so far the RSPCA have not been able to trace the owner.

Inspector Wilson said: “I am appealing for anyone who saw or heard the incident, or saw this group of males and dogs, to contact us. If anyone has any information that can assist my enquiries, please ring it in to us on 0300-123-8018.

“As it was early, there is a possibility that they were camping overnight in the woods, so we’d also like to hear from anyone who heard or saw the group on Saturday evening.

“I am also asking for anyone in the area who has CCTV to see if they have caught this group on camera.

“All calls made to us will be treated in confidence so please leave your contact details so I can ring you back to discuss the information.”