A RISE in horrific cases of animal cruelty are pushing the region’s charities to breaking point.

As a report published today by the RSPCA reveals that animal cruelty figures rose by 12.3 per cent in the North last year, those with the task of caring for injured and abandoned animals say they are being inundated with cases.

Many more animals are being abandoned because of the financial pressures families are facing, but a growing percentage are simply the victims of violent owners.

The report, headlined “A Rising Tide Of Animal Cruelty”, shows that last year in the North:

• 529 people were convicted for cruelty and neglect compared with 471 in 2010.

•458 disqualifications for keeping animals were imposed by the courts compared to 415 in 2010.

•22 prison sentences were imposed by courts compared to 19 in 2010.

A spokeswoman for the RSPCA said: “The North-East is an extremely busy patch for us.

“We would stop short of saying that the North-East is the cruellest area in the country, although there are some awful cases and the violent nature does seem to be at a different level to elsewhere in the country.”

To highlight the scale of the problem, the charity has released details of some of the worst cases it has dealt with recently, including that of sixmonth- old Lurcher-type dog Maggie May, who was stabbed repeatedly with a potato peeler and dumped on a grass verge in Ferryhill, in County Durham.

Two men were jailed for 18 weeks and banned from keeping animals for life after they admitted causing the animal to suffer unnecessarily.

Despite her horrific ordeal, Maggie May survived and was rehomed, but not before having a leg amputated.

RSPCA inspector Clare Wilson, who worked on the case, said: “It’s difficult to comprehend what this poor dog went through. The fact that she has survived and continues to be very loving towards people is testament to her and everyone who has helped her to recover.”

Another case involved a man from Leyburn, in North Yorkshire, who was jailed for 16 weeks after he filmed two dogs being set upon a snared fox.

Chief Inspector Mark Gent said: “All the time you can hear him and another man urging the dogs on and laughing.

One of them even pins the fox down, giving the dogs more of an advantage. The ordeal goes on for several minutes until eventually the fox is so weak it can’t defend itself any more.”

There was some better news in the RSPCA’s report, with convictions relating to cruelty to dogs down by nine per cent and a 5.2 per cent drop in the number of people reported to the charity’s prosecution’s department.

But RSPCA chief executive Gavin Grant said these figures could not mask the huge problems it was facing.

To run the charity’s 365-daya- year service it costs more than £124m annually and £15 a day to feed, house and provide medical attention for just one of the 7,762 dogs it cared for last year.

“The RSPCA faces a crisis that is stretching us to breaking point,” he said.

“We show zero tolerance to animal abusers. Anyone causing animals pain for profit or pleasure will be tracked down and prosecuted.

“We need the courts and councils, police and people who care to join us in standing up and getting justice for Britain’s abused animals.”

Local animal charities in the North-East and North Yorkshire say they are also inundated with work, with huge numbers of animals being abandoned every day, some in poor physical condition.

Gwen Butler, owner of Bunny Burrows, in Richmond, North Yorkshire, which takes in abandoned rabbits and guinea pigs, said the situation was the worst she had seen in 20 years of running the centre.

She said: “It’s just awful at the moment. Most of the rabbits we have at the moment have just been released into the wild.

“We’ve had animals from Shildon, Consett and Darlington that have been in a terrible condition, with missing hair and blindness.

“I would like to believe it’s difficult circumstances that lead people to do these things – I would not like to believe that the North-East is cruel.”

Susan Embleton, manager of the Dogs Trust, based in Sadberge, near Darlington, said: “We are always full and having to turn animals away, but the reasons for people leaving dogs are changing. It used to be that the dog was not suitable for a family, but now it is because people have lost their jobs and homes, and because of marriage break ups.”

• The RSPCA is urging everyone to play their part in RSPCA Week, which runs from Monday until May 6. To find out how to get involved, visit rspcaweek.org