What do you think about RSPCA and rescue centres?

I personally think they do a good job but they could improve in a lot of ways (I know it's hard job though), but after reading this I lost most of my respect for them.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2255387/Man-tries-reclaim-pet-dog-rescue-centre-weeks-leaving-told-PUT-DOWN.html

The man gave the dog to RSPCA thinking it would be the best for the dog since he couldn't have the dog in his new house, once he found out he could have the pet he rang RSPCA and found out his dog had been out down, I would of gone mad! If for whatever reason I had to give my dog to RSPCA and found out they had put him down I don't know what I would do...

What p***** me off is that they said it was because the dog was aggressive although MOST dogs I see on their page is aggressive and says that they don't like cats, can't live with dogs...

Some people might disagree with me but everyone has their own opinions, they do a lot of good things but they do also do some stupid things... They put down half of the animals they rescue every year, they should concentrate more on getting the dogs adopted and training them, for example getting a dog trainer or whatever to work with them to help some dogs who might have problems etc...

He put the dog in knowing that it might get put down I have absolutely no sympathy for him. He obviously didn't fight very hard for his right to a pet or find a home that took pets so he didn't give a *!

As for the RSPCA they work hard but have become a business more than a shelter now. They have been hires by the government to clean up all the dogs and cats etc and that's what they do, there's no love lost.

Personally although the RSPCA does a lot of work rescuing abused and mistreated animals I don't think too much of them I find getting them to assist in neglect cases etc is a nightmare and by the time they do anything, if they do anything, it is usually too late..

I totally support No Kill Rescues and shelters.. The ones that rescue animals and keep them until they are re homed and never put them to sleep.. These people are angels

If you put a dog in a shelter you don't deserve to get it back!

Hayley wrote:If you put a dog in a shelter you don't deserve to get it back!

True that! But I still think putting it down after 2 weeks is just not ok..
Specially when the reason was the dog is aggressive and they try to rehome some dogs that are aggressive too, they didn't give that poor dog a chance to even settle in or whatever

They do put dogs to sleep for various reasons, most of them stupid reasons. The man shouldn't have put his dog in their hands, that's what they do. It's sad, but entirely his fault . I don't think too much of the RSPCA but I know they do some good. Rescue centres are great, of course. All the dogs I had before Loki were rescues, never had any issues with them, myself.

I thought RSPCA was a rescue centre?
In my area all we really have in RSPCA so I don't know much about the other rescue centres. It was the dudes fault for putting his dog through that risk but as well in his head he thought they would look after the dog, instead of giving him away to a stranger he thought giving it to RSPCA was the best option which clearly wasn't... Putting the dog to sleep within 2 weeks is ridiculous, they hardly gave the dog a chance, just said it was aggressive therefor needs to be put down? That's wrong!

If it works the same in the uk as over here then the RSPCA works as a pound. They take in stray,homeless and dumped dogs, and unlike the rescue centres they can't turn down a dog because they are full. They just have to deal with it. I'm no particularly impressed with the rspca's work but there is just too many people giving up their dogs for stupid reason (like this guy) for them to have room for, rehabilitate and rehome them all.
A little bit of research and the guy would have known this.
Rescue centres are usually "no kill" but that also means that sometimes they have a waiting list so people that want their dogs 'gone now' instead take it to the pound.
This guy would had signed papers saying that the dog might get put down. I have no compassion for someone that does that. Even a friendly dog can fail temperament tests under stress. I do feel very sorry for this dog though.

Food for thought there in the article, make sure that if you must hand over your pet to a rescue centre make sure you are doing the right thing in the first place by checking with your landlord that pets are not accepted and get this in writing or if they are accepted to also have this in writing. Be sure to know the rescue centres policy on re homing pets - if they have a none pts policy or not. This guy should have done his homework a bit better, or left his pet with a relative or friend.

The RSPCA have been nothing but useless to me, I lived on the same street as a woman who bred cats, had like 5 litters a month and the kittens that didn't survive in her decrepit house got put out in the bin bags for rats and foxes to eat, they claimed because I didn't "Live close enough to be considered a neighbour" I wasn't allowed to file a complaint and have them go check it out.

The same with dogs I've seen being hit, apparently if I don't live right next to them and have photos or videos or somthing, they can't be bothered.

Their animal hospital did amazing work with my first dog when she needed help but their "rescuing" leaves a lot to be desired.

the rspca is an animal welfare society they are not a rescue they try their hardest not to rescue animals they want to just doss about and prtend they are the police!

I feel for the poor dog

I work for an RSPCA branch, and previously worked for a stray dog shelter. All I can say is, until you've worked in a rescue centre, you really have no idea. People hand their dogs in for the most ridiculous reasons, and especially in stray shelters, we don't have the means to turn a dog away. Where I worked previously, we had 110 kennels, most filled with staffords and their crosses, we all dreaded the day when the kennels got filled and one more stray arrived, which meant figuring out which were most rehomeable. We networked with other rescue centres constantly and transferred all that we could, but nobody wants the bull breeds.

We tried to work as a non-kill shelter, and had dogs constantly returned that were not safe to be rehomed to the public. For example, one came back for attacking an elderly lady, another for killing a sheep. There are very few homes that can handle dogs with behavioural issues of this caliber, and often the dogs are left in kennels for years, resulting in them becoming institutionalized. In the end, you have to think of the welfare of the animals.

I don't agree with their welfare standards always, and have heard many stories of untreated welfare within the home being brushed under the carpet which I cannot be on board with. But every branch is different, and have their own rules and regulations. The one that I am currently working for is excellent, they're flexible with rehoming and the animals are cared for and rehabilitated to a very high standard, but of course there are still animals that are put to sleep. That's the way the world works unfortunately.

I don't like the R$PCA. Yes, they do a lot of good, but their failures undo that good.

Unless something is high profile and/or easy they don't generally want to know. They won't travel any distance to investigate cruelty claims, and are extremely unhelpful on the phone.

I don't know much about their rescue centres, but I wouldn't use one myself.

I feel sorry for the poor dog but not the man.

As far as RSPCA go, the only dealing I've had with them was years ago when we tried to get them to help 2 neglected dogs and they weren't interested. One of them was kept looked in a stable (with barely any roof entact) at a deralict farm, never let out so it was full of mess, not sure how often was fed and watered but certainly not every day. The other was chained up outside the same farm with a small kennel for shelter. I appreciate they can't help every animal but this experience has left me with a bad opion of them.

Anyway on a happier note, we took the the dogs and they both had long happy lives

when we first got Louby, she was a stray, we decided that we couldnt keep her as we work, but the only centre we rang was Dog Trust as they never put a healthy dog down, there was no way i would have rang the rspca (or the dog warden) to come and get her, as i knew with her being a staffy she would have probably been put to sleep.
The dog trust would not take her though as they said they had too many staffys and they didnt want anymore as they didnt want to end up a staffy only centre, plus they needed to rehome the ones they had before taking any more in,.And i think they knew that Louby wasnt in any danger with us, so wasnt classed as a rescue as such.
So we have kept her. x

Cannot stand the rspca and much prefer little independent rescue centres, I also think NOTHING of the rescue Chance came from god awful doesn't come close

I have had a few dealings with the RSPA and they've all been bad. We found a stray kitten with cat flu late at night. So called the RSPCA who gave us details of a local vet. We took the kitten over to be told the RSPCA wouldn't pay enough to cover the treatment so either we took the cat ourselves and paid or it would be put to sleep. My friend I was with took the kitten on and paid the bill.

Then I was looking for a companion pony for my horses and was given someone's details. When I turned up the pony was in a terrible state was very lame in all 4 hooves, had mange and lice, all its mane and coat was matted and had rubbed raw patches on it. They were feeding it chicken corn!! I bumped into someone at a local dog show who had reported to pony 4 time to the RSPCA and no one had even been and seen it!

I think all rescue shelters do an amazing job. Haven't read the link, don't need to, the problem for rescue shelters is immense, any person or organisation that helps with that gets a huge thumbs up in my book.

My thought is that I wish there were more of them! The logistics of Rescues/Shelters is crazy. So many come in and only a few are trickling out. I think I would be depressed if I worked/volunteered for one.

Nor Cal wrote:My thought is that I wish there were more of them! The logistics of Rescues/Shelters is crazy. So many come in and only a few are trickling out. I think I would be depressed if I worked/volunteered for one.

Never thought of that but true more rescue centres or shelters would mean less would be put down since there would be more space for them to stay

The problem is not the RSPCA or rescue centres it is the fact that thousands of dogs, esp Staffies, are being bred and then lost or abandoned. No amount of rescue centres can cope with the sheer numbers. I also think quite a few people seem to take animal shelters for granted and just dump their dog there when they've decided they are (favourite rescue centre euphemism) "no longer able to cope." I don't really know what local councils etc or anyone can do about these multiplying Staffies but there must be something. It makes me feel quite sick to think of how many of them end up dead because there just aren't enough homes for them. This is a man made problem and it has got much worse since the 90s (I mean, with Staffs). What is the answer to this chronic crossing and overbreeding of Staffie dogs by people who just want to make money?

What a sad ending, the poor dog must of been really upset. Personally, i wouldnt even view a house that doesnt allow pets, you find out things like this before moving!!!!
As for the rspca, i dont rate them

Im 100% behind rescue centers, they do an amazing job. Alot more dogs would be pts if it wasnt for them. I think the kc should share their profits with these centers, maybe they'd discourage pointless breeding then

Poor dog

Personally not a fan of the RSPCA - much prefer smaller rescue centres. Although some will argue they do a fantastic job, unless it's a fluffy happy kitty or a nice well behaved fluffy dog generally they don't seem to care.

Take reptiles for example - they couldn't give two hoots. I've ended up rescuing several snakes because the RSPCA, when called, said they didn't deal with reptiles!

RSPCA - in my experience they have no interest in suffering animals unless they are being followed by a camera crew.

As for the dog owner - if a landlord ever said I couldn't keep my dogs, I would find somewhere else to live. End of story!

We have got 3 staffies all from our local RSPCA, it is a small branch that is self funded, they do a fantastic job in the face of so many dumped, abandoned and mistreated animals. They handle dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, ferrets, hamsters and other small animals. They have a few charity shops in local towns and they organise sponsored walks and other events to raise funds. Any animal taken in that needs medical treatment is given it, dogs and cats are spayed and neutered and microchipped as well as vaccinated. Animals with special dietary needs are fed the appropriate food. There is a very small paid staff with everyone else volunteers.

It's very easy to put places like these down, but they are only trying to help as many animals as they can. They only have so many places, and there are sometimes more dogs than kennel spaces for them.

This isn't their fault, it is the people that breed indiscriminately, and stupid people who believe that it is cruel to spay a bitch before she has had a litter or to neuter a dog before it has fathered a litter, ignorant people who let their unneutered dogs and bitches roam freely. People who buy a cute puppy and get bored with it or who expect it to train itself and get annoyed when it becomes destructive through boredom or neglect once the cuteness has worn off. People that get a dog that is totally wrong for their lifestyle, or who don't realise how much it would cost to feed and look after the dog properly. People get old and can no longer care for their pets, families break up and there is no place for the family pet, people get sick and can no longer care for their pet. Then you get the abandoned animals brought in by local dog wardens and the police, as well as those brought in by members of the public. Animals that are sick and the owners cannot afford the vet bills so they dump the poor creature and hope someone will sort it out.

Rescue centres have to deal with all of this and much more, most of them do a fantastic job even though at times they must feel like they are swimming against the tide and getting nowhere fast.

We try to do what we can to support our local rescue centre, without them we wouldn't have Polly, Charlie or Wilf, and we hope that all of the dogs that pass through their doors get the same chances ours have had, it's all too easy to criticize and sit back and do nothing, it's harder to help, either by volunteering to walk the dogs, fund raising, helping in the shops or cleaning kennels or just donating toys, bedding or chews for the dogs waiting to be rehomed.