The RSPCA is appealing for the public to help catch the killer

Animal welfare charities have condemned the killer of two dogs which were repeatedly stabbed and skinned and then dumped on a north Wales beach.

The grisly discovery was made by a woman walking on Afonwen beach, near Pwllheli, on Tuesday.

A carrier bag, which had apparently been thrown into the sea, contained the remains of the two lurcher-type dogs.

RSPCA inspector Lynn Williams said: "In 25 years in the job it rates as one of the worst cruelty cases I have come across.

"It was completely sick and perverse and whoever did it needs to be held to account and if I find them, they will be," he said.

"Why on earth anyone could revert to this I don't know, but if they could do that to a couple of dogs, it is conceivable they could do it to anyone or anything.

"It is worrying that there are people around who can actually do such a thing."

Mr Williams said that according to a vet who conducted a post-mortem examination they had been expertly skinned, like a rabbit.

Greyhound Rescue Wales (GRW) has called for those responsible to be tracked down and brought to justice.

Spokesman Alain Thomas said : "This sickening incident shows what some people are capable of and what they will do to animals unless they are stopped.

"Unfortunately large numbers of lurchers are bred in Wales each year and I am afraid that this incident represents just the visible tip of the iceberg.

"It is a sad fact that many lurchers that do not prove to be suitable hunting dogs will be discarded or killed by their owners but in most cases their deaths go unnoticed".

The likely scale of the problem of unwanted lurchers was highlighted by a survey launched at the Welsh assembly a few months ago.

The survey found that 139 greyhounds went through the 22 Welsh local authority pounds in a 12 months period.

A surprise finding was that, in the same period, 293 lurchers went through local authority pounds.

The dogs are often discarded when they are no longer able to race or, in the case of lurchers, if they prove unsuitable for hunting.

The RSPCA has called for anyone with information about the Pwllheli incident to contact them.

It wants to hear from anyone who may have seen an old-type blue Ford Escort van near the beach, popular with dog walkers, on Monday evening, when the killings are believed to have taken place.

RSPCA hotline: 08705 555 999.