XL Bully's decapitated head found in shallow grave next to its body

The heavily decomposed corpse of a decapitated XL bully has been found in a shallow grave in a town in Worcestershire. 

The dog's body was found by a member of the public in Hampton, near Evesham in southeast Worcestershire on August 30. 

The shocking incident was reported to the RSPCA. An inspector for the group, Claire Davey, told the Evesham Journal: 'This is a very distressing incident and we are appealing for the public to help us find the person responsible for this.

'The dog isn't microchipped so we are relying on anyone who has information to get in touch so we can look into this incident further.'

It comes as the charity revealed that the number of XL bullies that have been abandoned since the government introduced its ban on the breed has increased by nearly 700 per cent. 

It also revealed that reports of intentional harm done to the breed has more than doubled in the first eight months of the year.  

Dr Samantha Gaines, the RSPCA's dog welfare expert and the charity's lead on breed-specific legislation, said: 'These are very concerning figures. We've seen an increase generally in reports of serious abuse to animals - particularly intentional harm and beatings - but the increase in reports relating specifically to XL Bully types is very alarming and we fear this is a direct result of the recent UK Government ban on this type of dog.

'This could be a result of the extra pressures this ban has placed on desperate owners who may already be struggling to care for their dogs during this cost of living crisis. 

'But even worse, these could be deliberate acts of cruelty towards dogs who have become increasingly demonised in recent months.

'We're also heartbroken that many dogs have been and will be put to sleep simply because they are considered to be dangerous because they look a certain way.'

The XL bully is the fifth dog breed to be banned in the UK, following a spate of attacks on people last year. 

Other banned breeds include the pit bull terrier, Japanese rosa, fila brasiliero and dogo argentino.