A dog was found dead after being left in a car in the soaring heat at the Royal Show in Warwickshire.

RSPCA inspectors and police broke into the BMW only to find the Whippet was already dead. The temperature inside the car was 47c.

Three more dogs, all terriers, were rescued from the vehicle at the showground.

RSPCA inspector Lee Hopgood said the incidents were being investigated. ‘We cannot understand why we are still finding dogs in cars,’ he said.

‘We are all devastated that a dog has lost its life because it was left in the sweltering heat of a car. It is irresponsible and illegal to leave a dog in a hot car.’