The City of Mandurah has recorded a 36.5 per cent jump in animal cruelty reports in the last year financial year.
RSPCA WA have released the latest figures for 2025-26, with the City recording 348 reports, moving from eighth to seventh on the local government area hotspot list.
The City of Swan remains at the top of the list with 746, while the City of Wanneroo again came in at second with 572 reports.
The suburbs generating the highest number of reports were Armadale (146), Baldivis (129), Gosnells (118) and Ellenbrook (107).
Baldivis saw a 34.5 per cent jump on the year before.
Dogs and puppies were involved in the majority of reports followed by cats and birds.
Cruelty report totals for each local government area and suburb are available on RSPCA WA’s interactive cruelty data dashboard, which now allows report numbers to be considered in the context of population, showing the number of reports per 1000 residents.
RSPCA WA Chief Operating Officer Hannah Dreaver said the organisation’s 2025–26 statistics reflected continuing pressure on animal welfare services across the State.
“More than 8000 cruelty cases investigated in a single year is an enormous workload, and a 12 per cent increase in just 12 months shows the demand is continuing to grow,” Ms Dreaver said.
“We have significantly increased our frontline capacity to respond to demand and improve inspector safety with the number of full-time inspectors increasing from 12 to 25 during the year, including trainees. This has allowed inspectors to always work in pairs and has strengthened our ability to investigate cruelty across WA.”
RSPCA WA successfully finalised 53 prosecution cases, up 29 per cent from 41 the previous year and continuing a three-year increase from 36 cases in 2023–24.
Reports relating to insufficient care rose 22 per cent during 2025–26.
This category includes animals without adequate food, water or shelter, and animals not receiving vet treatment when they need it.
“Together, all of these figures show both the growing demand for RSPCA WA’s services and the breadth of our animal welfare work,” Ms Dreaver said.
“We are increasing our capacity to investigate cruelty and hold offenders accountable, while at the same time strengthening prevention, education, and support programs to reduce the risk of further welfare issues.
“Ultimately, all of that work has the same goal – to improve the lives of animals throughout Western Australia.”
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