Ten dogs, including eight puppies, have been found dead in a bag pulled from a canal in Yorkshire.

The dogs were found on May 20 in the canal running alongside the River Aire, by Holts Crest Way, Leeds.

A member of the public had spotted a large Sports Direct bag in the canal and contacted the RSPCA.

Two adult French bulldogs, six French bulldog puppies and two terrier puppies were found inside the bag, along with a red brick.

Ten dogs - two adults and eight puppies - have been found dead in a bag pulled from a Leeds canal. The bag had been weighed down with a brick. Photo: RSPCA

In August last year a family of French bulldogs - two adults and three puppies - believed to have been drowned were pulled from the canal, again in a Sports Direct bag.

Despite an appeal for information from the RSPCA, no one responsible for the incident was traced.

Animal Rescue Officer, Hannah Williams, said: “It is very suspicious that two identical incidents have occurred in the same area, both families of French bulldogs and both in Sports Direct bags. It seems highly likely that these are linked.

“It's awful to think what these poor dogs went through and I'm keen to piece together what happened leading up to finding them. They didn't appear to be in ill health which makes us, very sadly, believe they could have been intentionally drowned.

“This would be an awful act of animal cruelty and we are urging anyone who has any information about this possibility to get in touch with us so we can find out what happened to these poor dogs.”

Anyone with information is asked to call the RSPCA’s appeals line on 0300 123 8018, quoting reference 1268568.

Leeds dog deaths: Ten dogs found dead inside bag pulled from Yorkshire canal