Animal neglect in Britain has reached a five-year high, with cruelty investigators warning that suffering pets are increasingly being hidden away in filthy homes across the country. New figures from the RSPCA show reports of animal neglect rose by 28 per cent last year, with the charity now receiving an average of 17 neglect reports every hour its cruelty line is open. Frontline officers say the problem is worsening and they are braced for further pressure on rescue services as the cost of living crisis is exacerbated by household winter pressures. Behind the stark national figures are individual cases of animals pushed to the brink. One recent case involved a springer spaniel called Floss, who was found starving and close to death after being shut inside a filthy house with no food or water. In the same property, another Mastiff had already died. Floss was rescued by RSPCA inspectors from a rubbish-strewn, faeces-filled home near Northallerton in North Yorkshire. When officers entered the property, they found her desperately scavenging through waste in a futile attempt …