BRADFORD has a long way to go to combat its problem with animal cruelty, an RSPCA inspector has warned.

Rachel Oprysk was speaking after RSPCA figures today revealed that the number of animal cruelty complaints investigated in West Yorkshire have gone up for the second year in a row.

Last year, the animal charity investigated 8,440 animal cruelty complaints across the region, compared with 8,108 in 2013. Only Greater London had more.

In both 2014 and 2013 West Yorkshire had the highest number of animal cruelty convictions in the UK. There were 93 people convicted last year, and 126 in 2013.

And Bradford plays its part, said Insp Oprysk.

"Bradford has a way to go to combat animal cruelty," she said.

"It is a densely populated area, a big city, with deprived areas, so animal cruelty comes along with that, like all crime.

"I have been an inspector in the Bradford area for 11 years. Unfortunately, I have always been busy.

"It has not got any better and we are definitely getting more calls."

"I am definitely concerned - I am always concerned. It is an ongoing battle, and we do make progress, we do make improvements."

She added: "We are definitely busier across West Yorkshire as a whole, as well, dealing with cruelty on a daily basis - horses, dogs, cats. There is a big problem with horses in Bradford.

"Different areas have different types of complaints, and there are a hell of a lot of horse complaints in Bradford."

Insp Oprysk said education was the best way for Bradford to overcome its problem with animal cruelty.

"There are people in Bradford that need that education. It is an ongoing situation and we need to start with children. Bad practice gets passed down through generations.

"We are not wanting to work against people, we want to work with people," she said. "We are not out there to prosecute people. Some people are just not educated in animal care.

"We are about re-educating people. Children grow up learning things from their parents - but things are different nowadays.

"We need to get across that if people are getting an animal, not to get it on a whim, do their research and know that they can look after it."

Cathy Farley, co-founder of Paw Prints Rescue in BD5, said Bradford had a big problem with people dumping cats. She said her centre, like others in the city, was overflowing with stray and dumped cats.

"The cruelty is that they dump them," said Mrs Farley. "We get so many phone calls but we just cannot take them all in. We have loads of cats for rehoming."

Tom Ward, a veterinary surgeon at White Cross Vets in Guiseley, said: "I think animal cruelty is always a big issue. It is a sad fact of day-to-day life."