More than 900 abandoned dogs in the West Midlands were put down last year as the region saw a huge rise in homeless canines.
A total of 18,805 strays were picked up in the last financial year, a 25 per ent rise on the previous year and the highest figure of any region in the UK.
And 914 of those had to be killed because local authorities were unable to find new homes.
The Dogs Trust’s 2009 Stray Dog Survey found that 107,228 stray and abandoned dogs were picked up in the UK last year, an 11 per cent rise.
The figures have prompted animal welfare groups to call for microchipping technology to be rolled out.
Dogs Trust chief executive Clarissa Baldwin said: “This is the largest increase since our records began in 1997.”
Alayna Warner, publicity officer with Birmingham Dogs Home, which rescues, reunites and rehomes stray, neglected and unwanted dogs, said: “The only dogs put to sleep are those which are unhealthy and extremely aggressive to the point they are a danger to the public.”
