An RSPCA inspector is to examine the images, taken by a photographer at Sandringham, Norfolk, on Saturday, to determine whether the animals were subjected to "unnecessary suffering".

Buckingham Palace insisted that the Prince was simply trying to break up a fight between the two labradors and said that the pictures do not show definitively whether he actually struck them.

But animal rights groups condemned his behaviour as "sickening" and "cowardly".

The photographs show the Prince approaching the two dogs waving a long crook as they grapple over a dead pheasant.

One picture shows one of the animals cowering to one side as he swings the stick over his shoulder.

In another, it hovers above the spine of one of the dogs but is not shown making contact.

Onlookers said he appeared to take three swipes at one of the dogs while shooting in a field with his nephew Peter Phillips.

It is not illegal to hit a dog with a stick if it is to save it from some danger but the Prince could be prosecuted if it can be shown that he beat them unnecessarily.

Magistrates can impose fines of up to £20,000 or six months in prison for extreme cases of animal cruelty.

If found guilty, the Prince could also be banned from keeping animals and receive a criminal record.

Source: Telegraph.co.uk

Photo Credit: ALBANPIX