PROSECUTIONS for animal cruelty in Wales have hit a three-year high according to figures released by RSPCA Cymru.

The animal charity investigated a total of 10,540 complaints of cruelty across Wales in 2016, the equivalent of nearly 29 a day.

A total of 317 complaints were made to local authorities in the Vale of Glamorgan, the same amount as 2015 and a reduction from 346 in 2014.

In terms of convictions, a total of 120 were secured in magistrates’ courts across Wales – compared with 89 in 2015, and 116 in 2014.

Sixty-one people were guilty of the offences, again the highest number in Wales over the three-year period.

One such case saw Barry man Stephen Charles Hammond, 60, of Picketson Lane, fined more than £800 for firing a catapult at two dogs.

CCTV footage captured Hammond entering a garden and firing projectiles at two Jack Russell terriers, called Coco and Alfie.

He pleaded guilty to one animal welfare offence at Cardiff Magistrates Court on April 7, 2016.

A further 67 offenders were also cautioned by the charity in 2016.

Martyn Hubbard, RSPCA Cymru superintendent, admitted that despite it being a “busy” year for prosecutions, challenges still remained in protecting Welsh animals.

“Each and every year, I am left deeply saddened and appalled at the level of animal abuse, neglect and cruelty we witness all across Wales,” he said.

“Once again, 2016 highlighted the huge importance of the frontline work of RSPCA, with a series of very diverse convictions secured in court, concerning a catalogue of cruelty.

“It was a busy year in terms of necessary prosecutions activity – with more convictions secured than in the previous two calendar years.”

He added: “This doesn’t suggest more cruelty is necessarily taking place – but that people in Wales are potentially more likely to report it, and tools like social media becoming more adept in bringing incidences to light.”

RSPCA Cymru is now urging for public support for the introduction of an offender register for those who have been convicted of animal abuse and disqualified from keeping them.

Of 1,100 adults surveyed by in a YouGov poll in January, 88 per cent were in favour of the proposal.

The publication of the new statistics follows calls from the charity to increase the six-month maximum sentence available in England and Wales for animal abuse. The maximum sentence in Northern Ireland is 10 times higher – standing at five years.

Since 2013 in Wales, the RSPCA has prosecuted 11 individuals for breaching their disqualification from owning and keeping animals under Section 34 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

RSPCA Cymru’s assistant director of external relations, Claire Lawson, added: “We again saw a number of animal abusers hit with disqualification orders from owning animals in the future but it’s so hard for rehoming centres, pet shops and others to stop people breaching these bans.

“Almost nine in 10 people in Wales support the introduction of a register, which would be a critical step forward in keeping animals safe and helping us to tackle some of the horrendous cruelty witnessed.”