THE body of a deceased dog was found discarded at Irvine beach park earlier this week.

The Scottish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) have confirmed that they were called to the Marine Drive area of the park on Tuesday to uplift the body.

Images circulated on social media of the discovery which appear to show the dog which had been put in a plastic bag, wrapped in a towl and "dumped" in the dirt track.

It is understood that both North Ayrshire Council and the SSPCA were contacted about the discovery to arrange uplifting.

And inspectors from the SSPCA have since confirmed that they attended the scene and taken away the deceased animal.

They say they will be carrying out an investigation regarding the discovery.

It was also added that the dog's remains appeared to have been "at least a couple of weeks old" which may hinder these enquiries.

No further details were provided on the breed of dog which was found.

Scottish SPCA inspector, Caitlin Rea, said, “We received a report about a dead dog found in the Marine Drive area of Irvine on 2 May.

“We have now uplifted the body of the dog and will be carrying out an investigation. However, the remains of the dog are in our estimation at least a couple of weeks old so the information we can recover will likely be limited.

“If anyone finds the body of a deceased animal and suspects a welfare issue has led to their death they should call our animal helpline on 03000 999 999.

“If there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of the animal they should call their local council to uplift the body. If the animal is a domestic pet they can also transport the remains to the nearest vet to be scanned for a microchip.”