Bradford was today revealed as being part of one of the cruellest places in Britain by the RSPCA for the seventh year running.

In West Yorkshire and Craven last year there were 217 convictions for animal cruelty - four times more than South Yorkshire and North Yorkshire and double those of Cleveland and Tyne and Wear.

More than 22,000 animals were rescued by the RSPCA and 549 people convicted of animal cruelty in the area.

At a press conference today, held at the RSPCA's Bradford headquarters in Mount Street, the Government was urged to adopt a "duty of care" to help reduce suffering.

Owners would have a legal responsibility to make sure that animals had adequate food and water, appropriate shelter and access to proper veterinary treatment when needed. Owners would also be required to provide proper room for their animals and to avoid mental suffering and distress.

But Alan Wolinski, RSPCA regional manager in Yorkshire and the North East, also praised animal lovers in the district for coming forward with information.

"It is regrettable that West Yorkshire has topped the table for the seventh time but on the other hand, there are reasons for this," he said.

"One positive thing is that we have a lot of very hard-working inspectors who are doing a lot of good work and a lot of people in the area who are also concerned about animal welfare and passing on information to us."

But, he said, there was still a lot of work to be done.

"We are supposed to be a nation of animal lovers and yet our inspectors come across some of the most distressing cases of neglect and suffering day in and day out.

"During 2001 the Inspectorate in this region received almost 20,000 complaints of cruelty.

"This should not be happening in the 21st century and we hope that the Government will update the animal welfare law to enable us to act earlier in cases of suffering instead of having to wait for the complaint that the animal is unwell, injured or even dead."

A list of the worst cruelty cases included mother-of-three Hayley Westgarth, of Westbourne Grove, Otley, who was banned from keeping animals for two years after RSPCA inspectors rescued two emaciated terriers and two guinea pigs which had starved to death at her home.

Another case involved a Keighley pensioner who kept 70 rabbits in her home, with some kept in a cupboard under the stairs.

RSPCA inspectors found one rabbit which was emaciated and covered in red sores, with urine-soaked fur and unable to stand on its hind legs. A second was also thin and with a large abscess on its cheek and a third had discharge running from its eyes. All three had to be put down.

In February last year Margaret Foster, 69, of Burnroyd Avenue, pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to three rabbits. She was given two months to reduce the number of rabbits she owned to 15 and given a 12 month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £150 costs.

Another case in Keighley involved a crossbred dog with a fractured leg which endured two weeks of agony, vomiting and diarrhoea when his owner failed to get treatment.

Andrew Berry, 30, of Simpson Street, Keighley, was prosecuted by the RSPCA in July 2001 for causing unnecessary suffering to the dog. He pleaded guilty and was fined £250 with £200 costs.

RSPCA Inspector Richard Oddy said: "We are coming across more and more instances where people, with the best of intentions, take on more animals than they can cope with, and then find they are struggling both financially and practically. Pet owners must contact us before the situation deteriorates to the point where animals suffer."