Animal cruelty incidents in Suffolk have risen by a fifth in the last year, figures from the RSPCA show.

A report from the charity shows there was 132 reports of animal cruelty in the county during the last year, which is an increase of 20% when compared to 2021's statistics. 

The RSPCA said it now bracing itself for one of the busiest summers this year as it expects another "summer of suffering", with more people reporting cruelty to animals from July to September.

The charity has launched its Cancel Out Cruelty campaign, to raise funds to help its frontline rescue teams continue to save animals from cruelty and abuse across the country. 

Adam Jones, RSPCA chief inspector for Suffolk, said: “Right now, animal cruelty is happening in England and Wales on a massive scale and rising - and sadly the number of cruelty incidents in Suffolk are also too high.

"It is heartbreaking that we are seeing figures which show animal cruelty is, very sadly, on the rise.

“While we don’t know for certain why there has been an increase in reports of cruelty, the cost of living crisis and the post-pandemic world we live in has created an animal welfare crisis with more people getting pets with potentially less time and money to care for them.

“Each year, these reports of cruelty reach its terrible annual peak in the summer months – when nationally we receive a report of an animal being beaten on average every hour of every day. 

“The cost-of-living crisis also means the cost of rescuing animals is at an all-time high and our vital services are stretched to the limit.”

It is not known why reports of animal cruelty peak in the summer months although factors like animal abuse being more visible as people are outdoors more, could be one factor.