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'Turn lost dog out on to street,' say RSPCA



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Published Date: 05 January 2009
By Emma Harris
A FYLDE animal-lover claims the RSPCA told her to dump a lost dog she had rescued from the streets.
Catherine Whatmough rescued the black Collie, which was wandering alone in the middle of Freckleton Street in Lytham on New Year's Day.

The 43-year-old took the dog to her local police station, only to be told they had no facilities to take the dog in.

She then tried to contact Fylde Council's dog wardens, but none was available.

After contacting the RSPCA, she says she was told they could not take the dog and that she should let it back out on to the street.

The mother-of-three said: "I was really worried it could cause an accident, because a driver might swerve or slam the brakes on to avoid it so I took it in. I felt I couldn't just leave it there.

"I called the police, who said they did not deal with stray dogs and I needed to contact the wardens.

"I rang the council and they said there was no dog warden on duty. They took my details and said someone would ring me back but no one did.

"I called the RSPCA emergency number and they said if there was no other option then I would have to let it free. I was quite shocked by that.

"I have two dogs so I didn't want to risk it staying with me. The dog ended up staying with my dad.

"She was lovely and well-behaved. The next day we managed to get in touch with the owner who had reported her missing to the council.

"The dog ran off on New Year's Eve because it got scared by the fireworks but the owner had similar problems trying to report her missing.

"He was thrilled she was safe."

A spokesman for the RSPCA stressed it was not the charity's policy to tell people to release stray dogs back on to the street and the call operator would be spoken to as "a mistake had been made".

She added: "We are glad this issue has been highlighted as legislation means stray dogs are the responsibility of councils and the police.

"Being a charity, the issue is if we step in then we can start being used to plug the gap. If a dog is injured, then we will help but it is the responsibility of the local authority."

A council spokesman said: "We have two on-call dog wardens to cover the entire Fylde and there are occasions when neither is available.

"If that is the case provisions are made and our call centre staff will usually be able to direct people to a dog home that will try to home or locate owners of lost animals."

The full article contains 473 words and appears in Blackpool Gazette newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 05 January 2009 9:02 AM
  • Source: Blackpool Gazette
  • Location: Blackpool
 
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Tower-Ghost,

05/01/2009 11:57:23
I am disgusted at the way the RSPCA has acted to this poor lonely animal wandering the streets of Lytham.

As for the "call operator would be spoken to as "a mistake had been made".

The Call Operator who handled the call should be sacked as it`s clearly not regarded as a "mistake" as the person should`nt have said that in the first place considering the RSPCA is mean`t to help these animals.

This country is well and truly in the gutter!!!

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Behind Enemy Lines,

05/01/2009 12:15:41
The problem is with the owner having not been responsible enough and allowing the dog to stray in the first place, not anyone else!!

To simply "sack" someone is just beyond reason, and the real problem with this country is peoples opinion that everyone else is to blame other than themselves!!!
3

David C,

05/01/2009 12:53:44
"A spokesman for the RSPCA stressed it was not the charity's policy to tell people to release stray dogs back on to the street" No its not. Liers. When I lived in Blackpool the RSPCA took 3 days to collect a bird with a broken wing and when we had 4 stray cats, we was told to put them back on the street. Eventually after a major ring round we found a cats place to take them. Also when visiting Blackpool last week, my mate said she was being plagued with stray cats. she has 5 cats of her own, 2 were taken in as strays. I told her to ring the RSPCA, but she said she was also told to return them to the streets. So the RSPCA are full of it. They are not a very charitable cause and I refuse to give them any money.
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Kathrynb,

05/01/2009 13:26:10
Good for you David C - the RSPCA are sat on millions of £'s of donations but won't help smaller rescues. Not much kudos with a stray dog or cat - not high profile enough.

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Southernlassie,

Blackpool 05/01/2009 13:39:23
The RSPCA have had no money off me for years, but last year confirmed WHY I dont give them any. I know of at least three people who had their animals removed from perfectly good, loving homes because they MAY be neglected. I know of a few more people who were told to not bother the RSPCA with strays. And I know of one woman who had to have five healthy, happy dogs put to sleep because the RSPCA said she couldn't keep them in her caravan with her while her house was being prepared to move back into after problems. The RSPCA builds itself a multi-million pound headquarters, but has no money to help anyone but themselves. I refuse to give them anything. All my charity money goes to The Blue Cross, ILPH, PDSA and local animal charities.
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gigglegabble,

05/01/2009 15:34:30
i work within animal rescue and we are often asked to take stray dogs in, it appears to me that the fault lies within the bureaucracy of the system at present, the police no longer have a responsibility to collect/house stray dogs however they do have a duty to 1; protect the public if it is thought the animal may be a danger ,2; if it is causing a hazard to traffic ( however they will try to pass this responsibility to other agencies)the 'out of hours ' emergency stray kennels are very helpful but can only take strays with the consent of the dog warden ( who cannot do so if not on duty) messages left with the council operator are routinely not forwarded or treated with any urgency, this is not any fault of the dog wardens who are great at there job and often go beyonnd the call to help a stray or abandoned animal ,the fault lies within the council policies which urgently need reviewing and perhaps negotiating alternatives for emergency care with local kennels /rescue centres. may i also thank the very kind lady that found the lab on xmas day ,she very kindly paid to board a stray at a local kennels for a day as yet again there was no help available and all our kennel space had already been well and truly filled! i do hope that this dog had a happy ending to its story and am sure is grateful to its kind benefactor.
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gigglegabble,

05/01/2009 15:38:25
If anyone has any concerns regarding an animal please feel free to contact Easterleigh ,(789185) we cant work miracles but we will always offer help and advice to the best of our ability and availability of space.
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melj1209,

north shore 05/01/2009 16:15:58
i too had this problem with the R.S.P.C.A,

when i moved up here from the south coast i needed my ct of 10 yrs rehoming as i didnt at the time have an option for bringing her with me as i was going into rented accomadation til i found a house to buy.....so i rang my local R.S.P.C.A to seek their help, i was told on the phone that they had no spaces available n i should try the other local charities, so i did, with no joy, so i rang them back, distressed and upset at the thought of perhaps just having to let her roam the streets til someone took her in ( which wouldve been against all my morals etc....to be told that, that would be exactly what i would have to do, so the operator who told this woman to let it go, didnt make a mistake as i was basically told the same thing,

lucky for me i managed to work something out with the landlord and was able to bring her with me to my relief, but i dread to have thought what would have happened if i hadnt been able to.

9

,

05/01/2009 17:27:57
Comment Reported Unsuitable By User
10

,

05/01/2009 21:50:27
Comment Reported Unsuitable By User
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