What are your experiences with the RSPCA?
Posted by Orri@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 19 comments
I'm sure anyone who has spent a fair amount of reddit knows about PETA and their terrible reputation but I was wondering whether any of you had any experiences with the RSPCA?
There seems to be all sorts of contradictory claims and information on the internet when I search so interested in hearing your stories.
dunstablesucks@reddit
A few months ago we were out for the day on a weekend and our neighbours found our very elderly cat looking poorly in their garden. They didn't have our number so called the RSPCA who promptly arrived and took the cat leaving a reference number.
We got home around 5pm to find out the story and called the number on the card. The operator didn't have record of the reference number, couldn't give us any information and told us to try again in an hour. This carried on for the rest of the night, we tried messaging local RSPCA offices over Facebook, spoke to a couple of different operators but none of them had any knowledge of what had happened to our cat by the time the lines closed at 10pm iirc.
Now different people have different relationships with their pets so would react differently at this point. I'd had this cat for nearly 15 years, my wife had known her for 7 years and my 2 year old knew something was up so it was a pretty upsetting evening.
The Sunday comes and we (with some friends) start phoning round all of the local vets in case they have taken her to somewhere nearby. By mid afternoon, still with no info from the RSPCA line, we find her at a Pets at Home. She'd passed away in the night.
On the Monday they called with their update and a request for a donation. My wife tearfully told them that, we appreciate that while everyone was doing what they thought best for the animal, that she was just taken and they couldn't tell us anything. She died away from her family and they couldn't tell us anything so they weren't getting anything.
Lesson for everyone: chip your pets.
ChineseButtSex@reddit
A year late to this. Similar thing happened to my mum. Neighbours found our cat that has arthritis in their garden. Immediately called the RSPCA. They told the RSPCA they we were neglecting her!? The RSPCA jumped down my mums throat about it. It was obvious we took care of her and the other cats. She was 17!
Strange-Scale-5631@reddit
Sister has a cat who.is setously ill. Didnot eat could not stand phoned pdsa amd thay told us send a video.. so we did thay said he was not sick enough. And thay supose to..love animal. Had to phone out of hours vet he is now slowly getting bettet thay ara a disgrace.
No-Till36@reddit
I have had a good experience of the RSPCA, I had a mini pin, he was an escape artist, he was the only one that had a mind of his own. He escaped three times over the years. One when we got broken into and two other times when friends walked him and never listened to me, not to let him off the lead. Lucky enough he was chipped and twice the RSPCA returned him and brought him home. The time I got broken into, some very kind lady took him to her local vet, he had travelled 8 miles away. The vet called me and told me the good news. He had been missing for a week and I never thought I would get him back, The vets called to say he was handed in. It was better than winning the lottery.
merrycrow@reddit
A bit overzealous in their prosecutions. I know of an incident where they brought a case against a farmer and his teenage daughter because the farmer had shot the family cat. The pet was old and sick and he wanted to spare the animal a last trip to the vet, which tbh I sympathise with.
notonthenews@reddit
Ah yes, spare the cat a peaceful end by giving it a violent end.
merrycrow@reddit
Depends which of those you think would be more traumatic for an animal to experience. I've had a cat put down and I wish there'd been a better alternative available.
Alternative_Branch62@reddit
I agree with @notonthenews. How is a bullet in the head a better alternative? If humans were asked, which would you prefer, medication to help you die or a bullet to the head I'm pretty sure most would choose medication.
Unlikely-Passenger83@reddit
Personally I'd choose the bullet. Assisted dying is not pain free but it paralyses you so you can't speak.
Doorsofperceptio@reddit
You can’t ask an animal so you can’t make that comparison. Human beings know what a gun is and the fear comes with the association of knowing what it represents, so they would know what was coming and that changes everything.
I understand the concept seems barbaric, but in actual reality, the real issue with this is that in the UK, how many people have access to a gun? To people from the UK it seems shocking, what about Americans?
I don’t agree with using a gun and I never would, it doesn’t seem dignified or peaceful at all, but there is no rationale for why someone should get sued for it, unless the gun is illegally owned.
Shinobi-Joey@reddit
Absolutely useless on small cases involving pets. Had a person in the neighbourhood who leaves their dog outside all day and night. Howling every hour and whimpering.
Everyone is complaining about it in the neighbourhood. I called the RSPCA to ask for a welfare check on the dog. The guy on the phone said they can't do anything and contact the council.
They are only interested in big stings that boost their image. Will not bother with them again. I have a very low opinion of them now.
FancyAd3942@reddit
I know this was a while ago but so were the events. My mum has phoned them several times and nothing done as well as sone other neighbours. Our previous next door neighbour had a couple of cats who she frequently left for weeks even months alone and we tried to get the rosca to do something but they came out and said it was fine then not long after they got a rabbit who continuously escaped (probably in a desperate attempt to survive) the cage was too small it was too cold for those conditions as and the rabbit was barely fed they came out said it was fine then a short while later the rabbit died of starvation or dehydration who knows but they ‘loved’ the rabbit yet when it died threw it on top of their pile of rubbish in the gardern and I don’t know if eventually someone else put the rabbit in the bin or it rotted away but either way. Definitely glad they moved out tho 😅💔
Cultural-Map-7354@reddit
They are USELESS. I was genuinely concerned about pets in someones home and they just fobbed me off and said they needed something to happen before they'd investigate. Shortly an animal died and I think they could have investigated and prevented it
Ok_Airline6224@reddit
So I'm fostering a dog for them. First one, turned to bite. Dangerous, shouldnt have been fostered especially to a house with kids. I returned it within hour. Next one i Can't say I'm impressed. Tried ti guve me him while he had diarrhea and had been messing his kennel in night. Forgot to give me his medication, his raised feeder. A lead, i told them his breath and teeth are bad, they took him to vet to find out he needed most removed. Then he was off his food and latheragic, nose dripping a lot, I told them I found a tic, could this be the cause, they just said oh hopefully he is fine when you take tic off. Lovely old hound but I won't be doing fostering again.
Immediate_Size_1560@reddit
My experience was today my cockatiel went missing I found her after a week at the RSPCA they over exaggerated about her saying oh she’s on oxygen support and can’t be released unless seen by a bird vet to get 24 hour care gave them what they wanted including the vet clinic got her to the vet $270 in one day for the vet to say she doesn’t need oxygen support she’s fine just horny and a small undeveloped egg in her track that was stuck that was causing some fluid a simple fix with pain relief and hormonal injections and 2 weeks to see if she might need but squeezing to pop out the stubborn egg if the meds can’t fix it even the vet says the RSPCA vets and staff are idiots and not qualified how about the RSPCA start paying for all their screw ups for once like over reacting bs
LampeterRanger@reddit
We had an injured bird at work once just a half mile from their local offices. Couldn't be arsed to come out as it was only a pigeon. They were completely useless unable to eve give advice
Ended up taking it home with me, found out it was a racing pigeon and looked after it until I could track its owner. My dad is a former pest control expert who was surprisingly useful with advice, given that the pigeons weren't usually alive when he dealt with em. Pigeon was returned to owner safe and well without any influence by them
They also left some maltreated horses alone on the side of a major road because they were afraid of the group of travellers who owned them. Who had left them when they moved on. Didn't bother doing anything and the horses remained there until one wandered onto the road at night and got hit by a motorbike. As far as I know it was other travellers who ended up taking on the other horses and rehabilitating them.
Rspca aren't interested if it ain't on camera
thesmu@reddit
I had the same experience regarding a pigeon, also ended up looking after it myself.
Myshakiness@reddit
RSPCA is a horrible organisation. They literally said it's okay for people to kidnap their neighbours cats even if they know there is no issues and even if it's okay for the neighbour to try to financially hurt the other neighbour. RSPCA workers imo all deserve prison for life.
Zestyclose-Slice-118@reddit
My partner’s mother has our dog’s sister. Although this dog was my partner’s for a few months, until his parent’s stated they could do better with her and practically confiscated her. His mother over fed her and didn’t walk her, or allow her to behave like a regular dog. We tried for months to tell her she needed to change her ways for the benefit of the dog but she didn’t. Months later my partner and I moved back in with my parents, and watched from a afar as his mother’s dog gained so much weight she got to double her recommended healthy weight. We called the RSPCA and filled them in on the last year or so of experience with his mother and dog’s. They did a home visit and only determined the obesity to he an issue. For context my partner’s family are quite wealthy, and his mother is full of narcissistic traits. The RSPCA left his mother with just a slap on the wrist and signed the dog up to weightless program with the vet. Considering I’ve read several articles of the RSPCA removing dog’s who are only 10kg over the recommended weight, it shocked me to hear they let this dog stay with my partner’s mother. This dog should be 24Kg MAX, and eventually got to 50Kg, despite us badgering at his mother to cut it out with the over feeding and start walking the dog more. It is very clear in this situation that the RSPCA saw the money and thought it was a good enough reason to let the dog stay put. Despite the fact the same woman, with the same amount of money, neglected the dog to the point we had to call the RSPCA to intervene. My partner’s mother is a master of pulling the victim card, and no doubt cried and said she’d do better. She should’ve done better when she noticed the dog gaining weight, but all she thought and this is a direct quote “I like her the way she is, she’s my snuggle bug” allowing the dog to double in size and do nothing about it.
The RSPCA fail to update the people who file the complaint due to GDPR regulations and other bullshit. I filed a complaint, I want to know exactly what’s being done. I know the dog, I know the woman who neglected it, I deserve to know what the hell is being done and the well being of the dog now.