Authorities are seeking three individuals after a sickening video emerged showing them hunting a puma with a pack of dogs.
A cameraperson follows a man and a woman through the forest as the latter carries a shotgun under her arm.
The group stops beneath a tree where a puma is hiding and a bang is heard as the gun is fired.
READ MORE: Woman pretends to be nurse to ‘steal’ baby from hospital
High-pitched squeals ring out immediately.
The puma can be seen running along a branch in a bid to escape.
It jumps towards another tree but falls to the ground with a thud.
It is immediately pounced upon by the four dogs, which try to rip it apart with their teeth.
As the poor puma struggles in vain, the man can be seen joining in the torture as he whacks it with a stick.
The sadistic woman cackles and jumps for joy as the injured feline slowly gives up the fight.
She grabs it by the tail as the dogs continue sinking their teeth into its neck and body.
(Picture: Jam Press)
The man begins striking it again on the back of the head to finish it off.
The video recently caused outrage after it did the rounds on social media.
The Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama) is now working to identify the woman and her abetters.
Ibama official Roberto Cabral said: “We found out about the case online, and the first step is to identify the person.
“We’ll track her down to book her and take the necessary steps.”
Ibama officials are trying to work out where and when the horror unfolded, as reported by Need To Know.
The flora has led them to believe that it happened somewhere in the Caatinga region in the hinterland of north-eastern Brazil.
Cabral said: “Pumas are killed in Brazil for sport, retaliation when they prey on livestock, and occasionally out of fear of the animal.”
Their numbers are at risk of decline and the species may even become extinct in the area if such acts of violence go unchecked.
If the suspects are caught, they face charges of animal cruelty and of animal killing.
They face three months to five years in prison for the former and six months to a year in prison for the latter, plus fines.
A 2022 bill proposing harsher penalties for hunting big cats remains stalled in the Brazilian legislature.
