Bully XL dead, caged, found in Birmingham canal

An XL bully dog ​​was found dead in a cage floating in a Birmingham canal, prompting an RSPCA investigation.

Officers from the charity were called to a drain on Crawford Street in Saltley, Birmingham, on Friday where they found the body of an XL Bully who was between one and two years old.

Animal rescue officer Paul Nijar went to the scene and pulled the crate out of the water.

Inspector Laura Brewerton said: “We currently do not know the circumstances of this dog’s death but it is incredibly worrying that he was found locked in this crate floating in the water.”

She said inspectors had to consider the “horrific” possibility that the dog had been thrown alive into the canal and left to drown.

The dog, an unneutered adult brown male, was scanned by Mr Nijar at the scene and microchipped as ‘puppy 8’.

Mr Nijar said: “When I made inquiries with microchip contact details at an address in West Bromwich they said they had a litter of puppies that they sold and they didn’t keep the contact details.

“They had no other information about the person who bought the puppy and were understandably shocked by what happened.”

Ms Brewerton urged anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area on Friday or in the days before to contact the RSPCA.