Image copyright RSPCA Image caption The man releases his dog to carry out the fatal attack and runs away

A man has been captured on CCTV encouraging a dog to maul a pet cat to death.

Gary Truefitt found footage of the attack outside his home in Walsall when his cat Cleo failed to come back in.

It shows a man shine a light at the cat, which is sitting on a wall, before releasing his dog to carry out the fatal attack and running away.

Mr Truefitt, who had owned Cleo for eight years, said it was "awful" to think of his pet being killed.

"I noticed my gate was left open which was suspicious so I decided to check the CCTV and was completely shocked by what I found," he added.

"I was very upset, I went to my neighbour's house as I didn't know what to do."

Image copyright RSPCA Image caption The RSPCA is appealing for anyone who may recognise the man to come forward

The footage shows the man, who is wearing a cap, put up the hood on his jacket before releasing the dog and running off along Woodlands Crescent at about 23:00 GMT on 23 October.

"Cleo will be very much missed, she was a daft cat in lots of ways and would lie along the driveway even when there were cars about but she was a companion to me," Mr Truefitt said.

"It's just awful to think of her being attacked in this way."

The RSPCA and West Midlands Police have appealed for anyone with information about the attack to come forward.

"This is an extremely disturbing incident and we'd like to find out who this individual is as soon as possible," said RSPCA trainee inspector Fiona Howell.

Image copyright RSPCA Image caption Gary Truefitt said it was "awful" to think of his pet being killed by the dog

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