Purrs In Our Hearts - Cat Forum UK
Cat General => General Cat Chat => Topic started by: LesleyW on April 20, 2010, 12:55:41 PM
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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article7102322.ece
Just found this link on CC.
Just imagine how this will affect private rescues. :'(
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That's absolutely ridiculous :Crazy: I know the RSPCA aren't exactly loved but this will mean even more animals will suffer, not to mention the independent rescues like yours struggling to keep their heads above water :'(
Unfortunate visitors holding the animal will be told to contact the police, the local council, or a vet.
I know the Police and Council will not be able to do anything and how ridiculous to even suggest it, I'd imagine vets will be the same.
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I know my vets, since beng taken over by a national company, now refuse to take in strays unless they have an RSPCA log no. Seeing they are not likely to get this log number now, I suspect I will get more calls from my vet - that is where my last stray kitty came from.
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The police & councils should be responsible for cruelty cases >:(
The RSPCA have a lot to answer for. It is just a money making corporation and the animals are secondary >:(
I hope people vote with their pockets!
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The police & councils should be responsible for cruelty cases >:(
Of course but in most cases it's actually the RSPCA that prosecute not the Police. The article talks as though people going in with a stray cat/rabbit/budgie will simply be told to ring the Police/Council/Vet.
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my reply on CC (and the times thing if its published!)
While I am sorry that the amount of rescue places is going to be reduced, I am not sad that they are doing this and in fact welcome it. I have always thought they should not be in the rehoming business as their policies do not set a good example of how animals should be treated - pts feral , ill, old hard to home etc - sets a bad example to the population.
They should spend more time concentrating of legislation, prosecuting and educating.
I am surprised by the move as it will eat into the legacies they get - but hopefully that will be an increase for us local rescues who work as hard with limited resources.
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Not really sure what they're for in all honesty. Our local branch of the RSPCA hasn't taken strays for years now. And as for the fact that most of the time it's the RSPCA pressing charges with cruelty cases I've yet to see immediate evidence, because word of mouth isn't that to me.
I was talking to my partner about this and he said it was ludicrous, and I likened it to the fire service choosing only to put out fires caused by arsonists or something similar. They make me fume.
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i am ple4ased tghis is now fully in the public domain cos now oeeps will hopefullty think before they donate,
sorry typing sideaways grrrrrr lol
I wonder ifr this means all the small branches will be closed or forced to act in a certain way now, what will happen to cats like MIkey.
The RSPCA cannot prose3cute without a case going through the CPS as we all know cos of the Willow case and CPS would not allow a prosecution!
I think the RSPCA on the whole is just a joke and tthe policing of the really stupid welfare act is the excuse they needed to get out of looking after animals that really need their help.
It seems to me that vets are just going to be asked to put more and more animals to sleep and we are going to see a massive up turn in RTAs, feral populations and stray cats with no homes.
I cant comment on dogs but assume their will be more and more strays pts, whether domesticated dogs will eventually turn wild and run in packs, I dont know.
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Like JS the nearest centre to me has for some time only taken from inspectors and other branches, they advise to just put the animal out and it will fend for itself
Its about time these underhand policies come out into the view of the general public.
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The thing is as well, is that a lot of people don't know about local independent rescues and believe the only rehoming centres are the likes of RSPCA, so if they're no longer rehoming will there be an increase in people who buy animals from breeders instead?
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I watched this on Channel 4 News tonight. RSPCA came across very badly indeed. The gleaming head office facilities highlighted where a lot of funds raised nationally seem to be allocated, instead of animal welfare activities.
We donate monthly to local branch of RSPCA (amongst other cat rescues) as we want to help other cats in their care, having homed our Freddie from there and Gandolf RIP before him. I believe the woman who runs our local branch does her best given the poor facilities she inherited and she tries to raise awareness in local media to raise funds to rebuild a better rehoming centre. We won't be stopping our donation as it would directly impact on the cats at our local branch. I will however be writing to RSPCA head office about this decision.
I would love to see TV/radio advertising campaigns aimed at shaming back street breeders and those that do not neuter their cats and dogs. I'm sure the likes of Joanna Lumley/Ricky Gervais and other well loved personalities would give time to such campaigns. Perhaps aimed to influence children/young people into wanting to adopt from rescues generally. There's nothing like peer pressure to influence kids. It doesn't even have to be done under the name of RSPCA. If they are serious about caring for animals, it shouldn't matter that other animal rescues benefit from such advertising.
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and when you think how much their recent advertising campaign must have cost >:( I bet people that donated thought their money was going to help stray cats and dogs - that's certainly the impression that was given >:(
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As someone said to me today, the RSPCA will soon be full of fat contented cats who owners are being prosecuted while strays starve in the streets!
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So what exactly will the RSPCA be doing then ?
Lets face it, there don't do alot anymore :censored:
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arent the cats at HQ aready fat and contented from using up all the donations that were given to help little cats out there! Of course I am talking about the human fatcats :innocent:
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arent the cats at HQ aready fat and contented from using up all the donations that were given to help little cats out there! Of course I am talking about the human fatcats :innocent:
and I thought I was cynical :rofl:
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:rofl: :rofl:
My concern is also for the small branches who are running under the RSPCA banner and do work like helping MIkey and they get no mention from HQat all and the public needs to know about these branches .
I just wonder why they use the RSPCA banner, cos they get no finance and exist on donations, seems to me that now RSPCA have put their cards on the table, these little branches that do loads of good could end up losing donations if people have watcged HQs statement in the misbelief that they will no longer be operating.
Seems like a right bloomin mess and the losers are the cats and the volunteers.
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The difficulty in this decision lies in the fact that loss of options for disposing of unwanted animals will lead to an increase in animal cruelty (by neglect at any rate) so they are really just making more work for themselves - what a ridiculously short-sighted approach!! >:(
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The trouble is BC I dont think it will make more work for them cos they are very selective in what cases they investigate, its just the animals that will suffer and HQ have been ignoring many of these type of cases for a long time by telling people to not feed and cat or kitten will go away etc and they have caused cruelty to happen in my view.
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have to admit I'm not surprised by this statement to be honest only a matter of time as they been policing small rescues and shutting them down like little hitlers.
What I'd like to know is - of the £119 million they took in 2008 - where did the other £108 million go???
"The RSPCA is Britain’s eighth largest charity, with an income of £119 million in 2008 It spent £11.1 million on prosecutions in 2008, "
oh yes its £75 million on wages adn advertising - surely cuts should be made here before the animals suffer
Wonder how long it will be before the beloved SSPCA follow suit north of the border :tired: :censored:
as usual makes me sick!
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From what I've understood from what other people have said, unless there is outright cruelty then the RSPCA won't investigate neglect if the animal is being fed and watered anyway? So a cat could be living in absolute filth, with fleas and worms etc, but as long as they get fed then they're not going to do anything about it. Will this change in direction also lead to a revision of policies like this?
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I think the answer to that is a straight no :(
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You won't see any of this on Animals 24/7! :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: They're like flies round a dog's dropping when the press are there - scooping up little hedgies, comforting sickly puppies, fishing cats out of trees.... try getting them to answer the :censored: phone though! >:(
:censored: the lot of them! 8)
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a wee interesting read - well a lot actually but if you stick to the core data and if we read correctly they sitting pretty with nearly £200 million clear in the bank according to the year end report for 2008! Wonder how much they have accumulated in the last couple of years! ;-)
http://www.rspca.org.uk/ImageLocator/LocateAsset?asset=document&assetId=1232711337412&mode=prd (http://www.rspca.org.uk/ImageLocator/LocateAsset?asset=document&assetId=1232711337412&mode=prd)
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It has long been known that asking the RSPCA for help when there is clear evidence of animal suffering is a complete waste of time unless there is a TV crew around.
Calling their helpline elicits responses such as "what do you expect us to do about it?" or "nothing we can do" or "not something we deal with".
I've called them to try to get help for an animal in distress on 3 occasions in my life but to no avail. One was for a dog being beaten so badly you could hear it's screams streets away, another was for a cat which had fallen down a 6ft drop into a canal and was soaked and stranded on a plant. Not the RSPCA's problem, apparently!
As more and more people realise that their donations to the RSPCA are being wasted they will perhaps turn to their local animal rescue centres instead.
The thing that worries me is that smaller rescues are going to be put under so much extra pressure by the RSPCA's decision that they will become over-stretched and find themselves targeted by the "policing policies" of the very organisation that caused the additional pressure. Never forget that logic and compassion have no place in the modern RSPCA - remember the policeman and that poor cat?
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Last summer my ex's elderly mother rang the RSPCA cos there was a mommy cat and 2 kittens running at the back of the OAP bungalows. She was told' as long as the mom is feeding the kittens, it will be ok'!!!!!! :Crazy: What happens when she stops feeding them, has another litter, the kittens grow up and breed..........the list goes on! :'(
I've been to see Mikey, who Heather's looking after and it just shows the difference between the local branches and HQ! She has done an amazing job with him with a lot of heartache along the way, but she won't give up on him! :hug: :hug:
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This is so at odds with what their local branches are doing, such as people like Heather doing such much for cats like Mikey.
I remember going to collect a pregnant cat that a kindly neighbour had reported as belonging to a BSB. SHe had tried "another charity's" head office number only to be told that cats are resourceful and it could fend for itself. This was during windy, rainy weather. She was then offered a paper collar "for a donation".
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I have to agree with you Mark, the local branch I got Star and Amber from has some very good people working for it - the woman who's back garden the animals are kept in has basically given her house and garden over to it (making herself very unpopular in the process I should think, its a rather posh private road!)
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I wonder what local branches will do if they can't take strays in. Won't they even exist any more? - I'm confused :Crazy:
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I wonder how much they'll raise next week?
http://www.rspca.org.uk/getinvolved/getfundraising/rspcaweek
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Me too.
If it comes to it he local RSPCA branches might be better off without the RSPCA millstone round their necks though. Do national RSPCA make much of a contribution to the running costs of the local brances, does anyone know?
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I wonder what local branches will do if they can't take strays in. Won't they even exist any more? - I'm confused :Crazy:
not sure, Star was taken in as a cruelty case and Amber given up because of allergy - unless the local branches will be left to decide for themselves, after all head office doesn't give them any money I don't think
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Our local RSPCA has been fundraising like fury over the past couple of years to build a new rehoming centre for up to 40 cats. Whats going to happen to that?
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Whats going to happen to all the stray cats? this is certainly going to put enormous pressure on the smaller rescues- one's that dont have the publicity and funding as RSPCA have!
So now you have to contact the council animal welfare or a vet, who would suggestively pts because they are stray and the RSPCA wont take them! >:(
More strays on the streets, not getting sorted out and neutered only leaves the problems to get worse.
So what are their main goals now then?
How can they call themselves an animal charity and do this!
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Our local RSPCA has been fundraising like fury over the past couple of years to build a new rehoming centre for up to 40 cats. Whats going to happen to that?
They're still taking cats in that they've rescued from dangerous situations and who have been cruelly treated and abused, just not stray cats from the street so I imagine it will still get used
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When I read the article I saw they'd no longer care for animals if an owner was going into hospital - so goodness knows what would've happened to the girl I posted about in Rescue and rehoming. (Who is now being funded in a cattery by social services until her owner is better.)
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Sharon has just forwarded us an email from CP HQ about what to say if there are any press enquiries etc. It is just alog the lines of CP as usual, will do their utmost to help as many cats as possible. Obviously we aren't allowed to give opinions of other charities :shify:
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We just got sent this from HQ. This is what Mark has just mentioned.
Peter Hepburn, Chief Executive of Cats Protection said: “At this stage it is hard to say how Cats Protection will be affected by the RSPCA’s decision but I know our network of dedicated volunteers and staff will always do their best to help as many unwanted and abandoned cats as possible. At any one time we have around 7,000 cats in our care across the UK that need new homes so I would appeal for people to help by adopting an unwanted cat.”
Looks like they are all going to come our way. :tired:
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When I read the article I saw they'd no longer care for animals if an owner was going into hospital - so goodness knows what would've happened to the girl I posted about in Rescue and rehoming. (Who is now being funded in a cattery by social services until her owner is better.)
Thats the point, I dont see why any animal charity should have to care for a cat while its owner is in hospital, there family should make arrangements if they have one. I could understand otherwise if the owner was going into hospital and never coming back out, then the cat would be classed as homeless and should be taken care of by animal Charity's.
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CC, that's exactly it. He isn't close to his family, he has severe mental health problems and has been seriously let down by the health care services that were supposed to keep a check on him. (They didn't and a serious situation occurred.) I couldn't have taken the cat in as I don't have a spare room at the moment and he has very few close friends. Even I wouldn't say I was his friend and I've known him years.
So who's supposed to help the cat in the interim then? If I hadn't chased it up and got social services involved it's likely the cat would have stayed in the RSPCAs "care."
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I have not read allt this trhead. But i wonder if someone today rings about a stray cat what the Helpline will give as advice.. And what exactly is therefore happeing to the log numbers and financial aid given to vets when a stray is brought into them..? At the moment its 60 which is not enough but it does something if even to pay for PTS.. If thats removed then what will vets do?
So are they jsut dealing with cruelty with owned animals then!Cp has no powers to force anyone to give up a cat etc, but RSPCA inspectors do if you can get hold of one... They can force them to be rehomed...Would that then be a cruely case?
As Julie says whatever they were doing and now will stop goind the work will have to go some where and i am certain we will see more calls through to us... and other rescues. Which then means we deal with less owned cats..
Umm all not good news for CP or other rescues anyhow!
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I've had zero time for them for years - since they sent some sneering barely out of adolescent chugger around knocking on my door trying to shame me into donating by proclaiming loudly enough that all passing could hear "OH SO YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT ANIMALS" when I refused to donate. Fortunately at that precise moment the tripod chose her time to hobble melodramatically to the door to see if anyone gullible enough to give her cuddles shows up (so with her best Oscar-winning limp). THAT sharpish shot her down and she vanished very very rapidly! I won't give to any charity that resorts to aggressive, unpleasant chuggers.
Trouble is - they've got this mammoth media machine - all caring and fluffy with a camera crew around so people think they're worthwhile.
Are they still having the cheek to run the "we're innundated with animals because of the recession" - implying they ARE taking in strays?
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Can't even be bothered to read through this, but RSPCA wanted to put Capone down instead of trying to save his life. NUFF SAID!
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Yep, Capone was one expensive cat to treat....and that was all that mattered to them. Nicky, on the other hand who has nowhere near as much financial help, media coverage or publicity put herself out and got him signed over to her.
The RSPCA have such terribly callous rules regarding which animals are saved.
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heard today from a colleague that her mother's neighbour had put a rooster in a wheelie bin and then put a concrete slab on the lid. The mother contacted the RSPCA who refused to come out despite being asked several times.
I've not had a high opinion of them for years but even less so now [apart from the people at branch level who deserve more support]
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What baffles me is that they are supposed to prevent cruelty - how is not taking in strays preventing cruelty? I could understand it if they werent taking in owned cats (as some shelters in the US do when they have to have so many spaces for emergency cases), but not strays. Mind you, if you feed a stray, they dont class it as priority anyway. IT is a shame that main RSPCA keep doing things like this, as it does put all branches in a bad way, yet we know from here and CC that there are good RSPCA branches - mine are good at helping out financially if they don't have to take in the cat, but I dont like some of their policies. I just hope it doesn't put too much of a strain on smaller rescues.
The last two people who have knocked on my door asking for donations have been shown a cat that the RSPCA would have pts, they dont tend to stay very long when faced with a furry animal that wouldnt be alive if they had been involved.
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They are disgusting and obviously just a big money making scheme- making people think they are doing good for animals when the clearly are not >:(
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This press release from CP today... :innocent:
http://www.cats.org.uk/news/cats-an-crisis/
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This press release from CP today... :innocent:
http://www.cats.org.uk/news/cats-an-crisis/
Oh - the official one :innocent:
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But what use is the donation if it goes to HQ?
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HQ will have to issue top ups and pay for boarding if the demand for help goes up by that much. ;)
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I think sadly it is going to get worse now we approaching kitten season and some the cats with "issues" may have to go to the bridge to make way for the "normal" ones - I for one am glad outr lot with issues live here with us at the Clan and are allowed to be all they can be at their own pace - so many branches have a lot of cats up for homing and are running out of space - a very sad situation
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I just wonder what local RSPCA branches will do now. If they aren't allowed to take cats in, what will they do?
I know people on a local level volunteer because of their love for animals. Hopefully some of the RSPCA volunteers will volunteer for other rescues where they will be able to help animals?
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I assume they will still take cats handed in just not strays??
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Maybe will will have to start telling people to hand strays in as their own cats :innocent:
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I assume they will still take cats handed in just not strays??
Not from what people asking for help have told me. We are being told that they will only deal with cruelty cases now and will not accept hand ins of any kind. :tired:
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We've been working with our local RSPCA since we began, taking in all their strays as they had no one else to do it and at local level at least no one wanted to turn animals away or have them pts. They help us with neutering and other costs - I'm hoping this arrangement will still stand!
We have also taken in a couple of perfectly healthy and rehomeable cats recently from one of our vets as they were taken in to be put to sleep and the vets refused - this is also something we haven't seen too much of locally and that's a bit worrying to say the least.
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This morning I received my recent edition of RSPCA Halifax, Huddersfield and District Branch Animal Centre 2010 Information Booklet.
A quote from this booklet:
We do take in stray cats when space is available and rehome them after 7 days so if you have lost your cat please contact us with your details.
Mary
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we have a meeting with our local shelter on monday to see what they are dong but inspectors have always had 1st priority so i expect it will be business as usual.
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Is it just the adoption centres that define what they will/wont take and the volunteer run branches will do as they are now?
My nearest has been selectively accepting and giving out awful advice for a long time...
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Hi all...for what its worth this is my understanding of the situation from the last committee meeting I went to.
The main animal centres will be turning away strays. Like all rescues, the centres are also full to bursting and this means that when they have a cruelty case which HAS to come in then there is nowhere for them to go. Big organisation and big centres or not, they still only have a limited number of spaces unfortunately....thats always the way, big or small !
My understanding is (and please understand that is all it is....not an official line on everything...don't want to go and get myself into trouble as I have enough on my plate at the moment!lol)that the policy will be that cruelty and rescue cases will come first and be given priority and the branch manager will have discretion over the stray cases, but unlikey to be able to take many/any in.
As a branch I know we weren't overjoyed at the policy because ultimately it will mean we at local level are more likey to get overloaded (as the inspectors - which beleive it or not do care - will ask us to take them if there's no room at the centre.....but lets make it clear....it certainly isn't a policy that has to be adopted by the local branches....we will continue to do exactly what we've always done and help whatever cats we can in whatever way we can....as long as we have a space, a cat will have a good foster home until it finds a permenant one, whatever its situation and wherever it comes from!
It saddens me greatly when the RSPCA are given such a slating with a very 'broad brush' and the other organisations are held up to be 'purrfect' (excuse the pun :rofl:). We help many cats at this branch because we are quite often the ONLY ones that call people back! I had an email from a man the other week who's family is having to relocate and he is desperate to find a new home for the cat because they can't take pets with them and they have tried all the other family members...he's rung all the local rescues and we are the ONLY ones that have even bothered to get back to him. We can't take the cat in at the moment as we have no space but we've given him loads of advice, promised we will put the cat on our waiting list, and the cat is now on our rehoming page on CC and on our own website in the hope that we can rehome straight from them....the guy is so grateful and was prettty disillusioned with the other rescue centres tbh....as he said, even a polite 'sorry we can't help' would have been better than nothing. As I always say.....two sides to every story! And don't get me wrong...I'm not trying to be disrespectful to other local charities I respect everything that everybody does because I know we are all operating under extreme pressure often juggling rescue work with full time jobs and other commitments and there are times when something has to give...I think all the local rescues do a fantastic job and the area needs all of us...BUT....from experience its only ever the RSPCA that gets the bad press....because things are seen on a national level....there are lots of little local stories about other organisations which tbh aren't great at times either...
I don't see it affecting the link between HQ and the branches at all tbh...operating as a branch of a big organisation there will always be decisions that we agree with and those that we don't...its always been that way from what I can tell!lol We will remain RSPCA because to change would be incredibly difficult....we would have to set up as a different charity, change bank accounts, paperwork etc etc (I'm sure you get the picture) all this would do is take our focus away from helping cats (and to be honest I doubt whether we even have the expertise in our branch to know where to start!lol) and, at the end of the day we would still be doing exactly the same as we've always done as far as the cats are concerned, whether we operate under a different banner or not.
I know the RSPCA seems to get lots of bad press but I am proud to be associated with our branch as they have a brilliant attitude towards the cats that come into our care and we have a fantastic group of fosterers....thats whats important to me. In our area the RSPCA have a pretty good reputation :)