Reward offered after dog 'skinned' alive

A veteran animal welfare officer hopes a $5000 reward will lead to an arrest after a dog was "skinned", possibly by being dragged behind a vehicle.

The tan pitbull-type dog was found dead in the Whangarei suburb of Kamo about 9.30am on Saturday, The Northern Advocate reported. Its front legs and much of its left side had been skinned to the bone.

Whangarei SPCA manager Francine Shields said she was so angry about the injuries she was offering a reward for information leading to successful prosecution of the killer.

The injuries were consistent with being dragged behind a vehicle, she said.

A light-coloured ute was seen near the dog's body.

The injuries were some the worst Mrs Shields had seen in 20 years as an animal welfare officer.

"On a scale of one to 10 in animal abuse cases, this is pretty high up there, an eight or nine. I've seen some pretty terrible things and this is pretty bad," she said.

- NZPA