Convictions for animal cruelty have soared because families are becoming too stressed to care for their pets.

The number of people successfully prosecuted rose by 37% in the last year.

The number of unwanted dogs dumped on Brighton and Hove City Council has also doubled in five years. Animal rescue officials say they cannot understand why more cases are being reported.

But they believe the jump has been caused by more people not coping with the struggling economy and taking it out on their animals.

Dr Sam Warner of Manchester Metropolitan University, said: “We have seen a rise in cases of child abuse due to stress, and I expect that is the same reason for the rise in animal cruelty.”

A report by the RSPCA reveals there has been a 17 per cent rise in the number of people disqualified from keeping pets in the south east in the last year, along with an 82 per cent increase in prison sentences handed out.

The figures come just days after The Argus revealed the desperate situation Sussex animal shelters are facing because of a fall in donations and a rise in abandoned pets.

Among the distressing cases dealt with by the RSPCA last year were the shooting of doves in Worthing, the dumping of a box of dead puppies in Hailsham and the death of two cats in Pulborough, poisoned with anti-freeze.

The report shows 184 people were convicted for cruelty and neglect in the south east in 2011, up from 180 in 2010.

A total of 366 convictions for cruelty to dogs was recorded compared to 266 the previous year and 13 people were jailed for the offences last year. The figures have been released ahead of RSPCA Week which runs from April 30 to May 6.

Sally Bruce, the RSPCA’s regional manager for the south east, said: “Where someone has already harmed an animal there has to be a way of ensuring animals are not left to suffer and the RSPCA is who people turn to. “We can’t do this without the support of the public and we need it now more than ever.”