An animal advocacy group has called for stricter penalties for people who abuse animals after images of a drowned dog were posted online.

It came after police said they were investigating “disturbing images” being circulated of a dog that was found dead in the waters off Admiralty House in Pembroke at the weekend. The images were too graphic to reproduce.

Calling the discovery “gruesome”, the Bermuda SPCA commended police for swiftly announcing the investigation.

A spokeswoman added: “The Bermuda SPCA can be a resource if someone is feeling that they can’t manage or cope with their dog, or are feeling desperate due to circumstances that may prevent them from caring for or keeping their dog.

“Anyone in this position is urged to call 236-7333 regarding the option to surrender the dog to the SPCA.”

Punish the Deed not the Breed spokeswoman Grace Hoskins said: “It deeply disturbs us when we see this happen — and it’s not the first time we’ve heard of such things — which is part of the reason why we advocate for legislation changes.”

“Current dog legislation is extremely outdated and doesn’t adequately address animal abuse.

“We think stricter policy in regards to people who abuse animals needs to be in place, all of our suggested amendments got drafted and submitted to the Canine Committee for consideration and the current government really needs to make it a priority to change these laws to take better care of Bermuda’s dogs.”

“We want happy, healthy dogs and owners.”

A police spokesman said on Saturday that an investigation had been launched in tandem with the relevant government authorities. Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 295-0011.