RSPCA  officers are appealing for information after the body of a dead dog was found in the back of an abandoned van with her leg and tail trapped in the door.

The tan-coloured female lurcher was found in a Ford Transit van in Chapel Lane, Hillingdon, off Stockley Road, at around 1pm on New Year’s Eve after a passer-by made the shocking discovery.

Insp Anthony Pulfer, who attended the scene with police, who gained access to the vehicle, said: “It was incredibly distressing to see such an upsetting sight, with the poor dog’s foot and tail trapped in the door.

“I’m very concerned about the circumstances surrounding her death. She was emaciated and I suspect she suffered before dying.

“We cannot be sure whether she was still alive when she was abandoned in the van, or if someone dumped her body in there after she died.

“We have been told two men left the van on Christmas Eve and there are reports that a dog had been heard barking in the vehicle, but we do not know if it was the same dog.

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“It’s almost too horrific to imagine that someone could have slammed her leg and tail in the door while she was still alive and just left her to die.

“The van was filthy inside with just a saw and grasscutter inside the vehicle, alongside her body.

“Unfortunately she did not have a microchip and attempts to trace the owner of the van have proved unsuccessful so we are desperate to hear from anyone with information which could prove useful to our investigation.”

You can call the RSPCA inspector appeal line on 0300 123 8018.

The RSPCA is only able to investigate incidents like this thanks to generous donations from the general public. To help, visit: www.rspca.org.uk/give