DERBYSHIRE has been ranked in the top 10 worst places in the UK reports of animals being used to fight.
Calls to the RSPCA reporting organised animal fighting have gone up by a third in the past five years - despite dog and cockfighting being banned for 180 years.
There was a total of 594 calls to the charity in 2014 to report incidents or information connected to organised animal fighting, compared to 449 in 2010 - an increase of almost 33%.
Chief inspector Ian Briggs, from the RSPCA's special operations unit which investigates organised animal crime, said the figures came as no surprise.
He said: "RSPCA inspectors deal with countless instances of neglect caused by ignorance, but these cases are all about premeditated cruelty. People are deliberately breeding, training and fighting animals for the sole purpose of inflicting suffering.
"Hopefully one day organised animal fighting can truthfully be described as a thing of the past. Until then, we'll keep investigating and try to bring about an end to such horrific levels of animal cruelty."
The areas with most reports of organised animal cruelty to the RSPCA in 2014 were:
1. West Midlands (48)
2. Greater London (36)
3. Greater Manchester (35)
4. Lancashire (27)
5. Kent (26)
6=. Nottinghamshire (23)
6=. West Yorkshire (23)
8=. Essex (18)
8=. South Yorkshire (18)
10=. Cheshire (16)
10=. Derbyshire (16)
To report animal cruelty contact the RSPCA's 24-hour cruelty and advice line on 0300 1234 999.
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