This is the shocking a moment a heartless dog owner appears to throw his terrified greyhound into the freezing ocean.
Witnesses reported seeing three men with nine muzzled greyhounds walking towards a pier in the sea.
Disturbingly, one of the men was then seen repeatedly throwing one of the dogs into the water and yanking it back in on a long lead on Thursday 2 November.
One witness, who did not wish to be named, said he and his children were left shaken by what they saw happening to the dog in Hartlepool, County Durham.
He said: “It was being carried out to the end of the structure and unceremoniously flung in from a height of about 4ft and a distance, through the air, of 6ft.
“The waves were quite strong and my first thought was, once it had surfaced, what if it was propelled by the crashing waves into the rusting sides of the pier?”
John Stephenson, who runs Greyhound Rescue North East, was shocked to hear what had happened and said he hadn’t heard of the practice before.
He said: “I have never heard of anything like this before, there is just no logic to it.
“Why on earth would anyone throw a dog into the sea like this in freezing cold conditions, it is just stupid.”
The RSPCA is urging anyone with information to come forward about what has been described as a ‘distressing’ incident.
A spokeswoman for the RSPCA, said: “We are still making inquiries after we received a concerning report that a group of men with a number of dogs were seen in Hartlepool repeatedly throwing one of the dogs - a greyhound - into the water on Thursday, 2 November.
“An inspector launched an investigation and attended the scene, but the group were no longer there.
“Since then we have been contacted by a member of the public who provided photos of what appears to be a man throwing the dog into the water.
“These images are very distressing and we would urge anyone who may have witnessed this, or may have more information which could help an investigation, to contact us on 0300 1234 999.”