The RSPCA has seen the number of reports about animal cruelty posted on social media almost double from the previous year, as it highlights the worrying increase as part of its Cancel Out Cruelty campaign.
The charity’s figures, released today, show there were 756 reports of animal abuse on social media last year (2021) across England and Wales compared to 431 in 2020, and just 157 in 2019.
The RSPCA logged an average of 63 reports of cruelty on social media a month last year - compared to just 35 a month during the previous year.
Mark Gent, Chief Inspector for Durham and Cleveland, said: “It is very worrying that we are seeing more reports of animal abuse being posted on social media for likes and kudos. These videos are often accompanied by laughing emojis or silly comments, it is normalising - and even making light of - animal cruelty.
“It’s worrying that people who wouldn’t ordinarily see animal cruelty are being exposed to it online. Not only could it encourage other people to do the same but it creates a society that has become desensitised to some of the most horrific acts of cruelty to animals which is a backward step for us as a nation of animal lovers.”
The RSPCA has released its ground-breaking inaugural report in partnership with the Scottish SPCA - the Animal Kindness Index - which looks at the nation’s attitude towards animals. The report revealed that a fifth of people (22 per cent) had witnessed animal cruelty online in the last 12 months which equates to a whopping 11.5 million people in the UK.
On social media almost half have seen abuse on Facebook (46 per cent) followed by YouTube and Twitter (20 per cent), 11 per cent on TikTok, 10 per cent on Instagram, 5 per cent on Reddit, 4 per cent on WhatsApp and 2 per cent on Snapchat. Of the reports made to the RSPCA, 62 per cent were posted on Facebook and 20 per cent posted to Instagram - with just 3.2 per cent posted on Snapchat.
The RSPCA and Scottish SPCA have also been calling on the Government to include animal welfare as part of the Online Safety Bill which aims to increase safety and tackle illegal content online. The Government is yet to include animal cruelty content under the scope of the Bill despite figures showing the high numbers of people witnessing this cruelty online.
The charity’s Special Operations unit works to trace these social media videos and find who is responsible to bring them to justice.
Social Media Manager at the RSPCA, Tess Macpherson-Woods, added: “Managing the RSPCA's social media accounts is both extremely rewarding and heart-breaking. We're sent an awful lot of upsetting and graphic content, but only our national cruelty line can task jobs to inspectors, so all we can do is provide advice and encourage people to call them.
“We've managed to track down animal abusers by sharing appeals for information on social media which is just the best feeling. Whilst a poor animal has suffered, knowing you're part of a team that will do its best to rescue, rehabilitate and seek justice for them makes the upsetting part of the job worthwhile."
The RSPCA receives around 90,000 calls to its cruelty line every month and investigates 6,000 reports of deliberate animal cruelty, including animal fighting and hunting. But in the summer calls rise to 134,000 a month - three every minute and reports of cruelty soar to 7,600 each month - a heart-breaking 245 every day.
This is why the charity has launched its Cancel Out Cruelty campaign, to raise funds to help its rescue teams out on the frontline continue to save animals in need of help and to raise awareness about how to stop cruelty to animals for good.
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£2 could help to provide a meal for a cat or dog in care
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£6 could help pay to feed a dog for a day in care
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£10 could help pay towards bandages for a cat or dog
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£15 could help pay for a cat or dog’s clinical exam
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£20 could help pay towards a bird catching kit
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£30 could help pay for a life jacket for an inspector
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£100 could help pay towards water rescue equipment
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£500 could kit out a 4x4 inspector van
Frontline teams are working hard to rescue animals in need this summer but we can't do it alone - they are urging the general public to help Cancel Out Cruelty.
To help support the RSPCA, visit: www.rspca.org.uk/stopcruelty
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