Dog owners have been urged to keep their pets under control after a rare baby seal died after reportedly being attacked by a canine on a beach.

Committee members for Friends of Horsey Seals were called by a member of the public at around 9am today to reports of the grey seal pup in difficulty at Winterton beach.

By the time chairman Peter Ansell and committee member David Vyse arrived, the seal was fighting for its life and the pair called the RSPCA.

The animal was taken to the charity's East Winch Wildlife Centre but workers called Mr Ansell later in the day to inform him that they had decided it would be kinder to put the seal to sleep.

Mr Ansell said: 'The seal was extremely healthy and had been feeding itself very well before this happened.

'The thing we want to get across is for people to make sure their dogs are under control, if not necessarily on the lead.

'Some owners keep their dogs under control but others go into the car park and the dog goes flying off the lead down the beach.'

Dogs are banned from certain sections of Norfolk beaches but there are no restrictions in place on this part of the beach at Winterton.