MORE than 450 abandoned animals have been reported to the RSPCA in North Yorkshire so far this year - including this cat and her kitten, found dumped on the doorstep of its York animal centre.

The charity says the number of animals dumped in the year to July was up by 48 per cent on the same period last year in the region.

It fears that a huge rise in pet ownership during the pandemic, coupled with the strain on people's finances from this year's cost of living crisis, are behind the increase.

A spokesperson said that in North Yorkshire, 613 abandoned animals were reported to the RSPCA last year and 456 had been reported so far this year, including the York incident, which was captured on CCTV at 7.30pm on January 27.

They said the footage showed the cats - an adult female and her 10-week-old kitten - were dumped on the doorstep at the RSPCA's animal home in Landing Lane.

They said: “When our staff arrived at work on January 28, they found the two kittens left on the doorstep in a plastic pet carrier.

“They’d been out all night in the cold. They were both initially very nervous but settled in well."

The cats, which were named Cora and Machli, were put up for rehoming once they were fully recovered from their ordeal.

The spokesperson said the charity had released the stark figures as part of its Cancel Out Cruelty summer campaign, which aimed to raise funds to keep its rescue teams on the frontline saving animals in desperate need of help, as well as raise awareness about how everyone can all work together to stop cruelty for good.

Chief Inspectorate Officer Dermot Murphy said: “The idea of putting your cat in a cat carrier and taking them to a secluded spot in the woods before walking away, or chucking your dog out of the car and driving off leaving them desperately running behind the vehicle, is absolutely unthinkable and heartbreaking to most pet owners.

"But sadly we are seeing animals callously abandoned like this every single day.

“We understand that sometimes the unexpected can happen - the pandemic and cost of living crisis proved that - but there is never an excuse to abandon an animal. 

"There are always other options for anyone who has fallen on hard times and can no longer afford to keep their pet.”

The spokesperson said that a recent report had shown that the cost of living crisis was the most urgent threat to pet welfare in the UK, with a fifth of owners worried about how they would afford to feed their pets.

The study also showed cat owners seemed to be most concerned about cost of living pressures.