THE BODY of a dog found chained to a breeze block and dumped in a canal is sparking fears of a possible serial animal killer.

It took volunteers Shelagh Savage, 65, and Ron Kelly, 70, nearly five hours to retrieve the poor dog from the murky waters of the River Lea, in Walthamstow Marshes, on Saturday. 

Still wearing its owner’s collar, the “clearly loved” dog was microchipped and had runaway a number of days before.

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The dog was chained to a block of concrete

Since the grisly discovery, another two dogs were found drowned in the same canal – but the RSPCA has not yet confirmed if the incidents are related.

Ms Savage, a volunteer for charity Dog Lost, never knew the awful circumstances of the dog's death when she responded to calls to remove it from the canal by the Horseshoe Bridge.

She said: “No one was taking responsibility for removing it, so we had to do something.”

The scenic bend in the canal is home to scores of barges in the Lea Valley Springfield Marina, with joggers and dog walkers regularly using the paths running alongside.

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Many canal barges find a home on the River Lea

As Ms Savage approached the popular beauty spot with fellow volunteer Mr Kelly, she was first hit with the stench of a decomposing animal.

The Lea Valley Regional Park Authority knew about the dog three days before, but as it was “too far from the bank to retrieve” they said the responsibility lay with the Canal and River Trust.

Following days of inaction, the volunteers found themselves at the putrid river bank and began the difficult process of fishing the dog out.

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Shelagh Savage pays tribute

The volunteers couldn’t help but retch as they tried getting the animal closer to the bank.

Five hours later the animal was close enough and after numerous failed attempts, it was finally ashore.

The dog’s awful demise now dawned on the pair and they immediately phoned the RSPCA.

With the RSPCA short on staff on Saturday, they then had to haul the dead dog a mile in a makeshift trolley to their car before taking it to a vet.

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“I’m sure they’ll be more dogs coming to light"

Ms Savage said: “The dog was clearly loved, it had an expensive harness on. It is so upsetting and traumatic.

“We knew exactly what that dog was going through when that sick person threw that dog in the canal.

“I’m sure they’ll be more dogs coming to light.

“All these dogs have got owners. Somewhere there is a frantic owner looking for their dog and not knowing what happened to it.”

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The dog was dumped just by the Lea Valley Springfield Marina 

Mr Kelly added: “I’m just thinking about the dog looking at somebody with trust in its eyes as they put a chain on him.

“What sort of mind can do that? If they can do it to a dumb animal they can do it to a child.”

Taking on the investigation, RSPCA inspector Rebecca Bedson, managed to trace the owner using the dog’s microchip, who said the dog had runaway.

She said: “At this stage we do not know if the dog was dead before he was put in the river, but if sadly this dog was alive when it went into the water then it would have suffered a horrendous death.

“We have been made aware of other incidents relating to two other dogs found in the river and if anyone has any information no matter how small is urged to call me on the RSPCA Inspector Appeal line on 0300 123 8018.”

The RSPCA paid tribute to the “kind-hearted” volunteers and urged anyone with information about the dog or people acting suspicious in the area to come forward.

A spokesperson for Lee Valley Regional Park Authority added: “The death of any animal in such a cruel manner is utterly deplorable and our staff remain alert for any suspicious activity.

“We would ask park visitors to be vigilant and to report any incidents to us on 03000 030 610 or 01992 210 196 after 5pm.”