found a dog in a bad state

[Branleuse]

have found a dog with severe red mange, swollen bald legs, bald head, its on its tail too. shes also thin and has overgrown nails. she stinks.
have tried to call relevant authorities. noone seems interested and dog warden doesnt work at the weekend.
dp wants to keep her, and is worried she will be given back to people whove let her get into this state.
whats likley to happen? shes a sweet thing, although has shat in the house so presumably not house trained. weve bathed her and fed her and shes now sleeping.
if we hand her in, will she be at risk of neglect again?

is red mange contagious or is that just the other sort.

[Floralnomad]

I would say take photos and call the authorities tomorrow explain that you are happy to keep her ,if she is in that bad a condition they wouldn't make her go back to her owners . TBH they probably won't claim her anyway for fear of prosecution .

[D0oinMeCleanin]

Has she been neglected or stray for a long time?

If she has been neglected that badly it is unlikely that her owners would bother looking for her.

Contact the dog warden on monday, you have to do this by law, you do not have to hand the dog over, but if you choose to keep her you have to keep her for a minimum of 28 days and must relinquish her to her owners if they come forward.

I would advise the RSPCA, however, from what you describe it is unlikely she would survive any encounter with them. If the dog warden wants them involved make sure you never let her out of your sight when they're dealing with her. It is not unheard of for the RSPCA to destroy dogs "in error" in cases like this, where the dog has a loving home already lined up.

[Owllady]

We found a dog years ago with really bad fleas, bald, I took her to the police station who put her in kennels but lodged that I would have her if no one came forward (I am a great believer in fate)
Anyway an elderly lady came forward, she received advice regarding the fleas, and she took her home. It wasn't cruelty though, which it sounds like his is

[nuttymutty1]

I am pretty sure Doin means advise against the RSPCA. They will without doubt put the dog to sleep.

Check with your council some have a pts in the pound after 5 days others give longer. If that is the option please do not hand over the dog to teh warden.

I would contact a vet asap to check the health and what is the skin condition asap for your safety and the dogs (do you have other animals in your house?)

Sarcopetic mange is contagious but not dermodetic mange.

[Branleuse]

im pleased we're not obliged to hand her over. Dp says he won't.
the only excuse i can think of for that would be that someone had already rescued her recently and was treating her?? i dont think so though.

she dorsnt appear to be trained although when we found her running round the main road around big town centre roundabout, dp did manage to get her to come and sit down so he could grab her.

she also has pooed in the house 3 times and appears to not know how to use stairs

[Branleuse]

shes been reported missing. I dont want her to go back to people that dont know how to look after a dog

[GinSoakedMisery]

:( Poor dog.

[mypocketsarevide]

Don't give her back ..you and your dp are really good people helping her.

[D0oinMeCleanin]

This is where the RSPCA might prove useful, while they are utterly useless and down right cruel in most cases, prosecution for neglect is something they do seem to excel at. Just make sure you do not leave the dog unattended in their care, they will kill her, something else they seem to excel at.

How long has she been missing? It is possible she is a much loved family pet and got into the state she is in while missing, obviously that will depend upon how long she has been missing.


If you keep the dog without informing the dog warden and getting help from them and the RSPCA you leave yourself open to being charged with theft by finding. It is an offense to keep a dog that is not yours.

[CosyTeaBags]

Oh bless you OP for taking this dog in.

Did you have any more information about the owners - like someone said the dog might have been missing for a long time and therefore got into this state whilst missing... or she might not, but if the owners could neglect her like that why would they bother reporting her missing?

I second the advice to take her to a vets. Do you have other animals? You might be risking cross infection of mange and whatever else if shes not vaccinated.

[Branleuse]

she was only reported missing yesterday. no name. escaped from house

[Branleuse]

yes we have another dog, a rescue staffie and 2 rescue cats

[Branleuse]

im struggling to believe the rspca would come and euthanase her while im not looking.

looks like we wont have many rights here

[coffeeinbed]

Poor dog.
Reposted missing yesterday, she didn't get in such a state overnight.
She must have been neglected for quite some time.

[Cakesnbeer]

Maybe you coukd just loose her too? I would...she will be unrecognisable soon

[coffeeinbed]

Also no name?
Just dog, that's horrible.

[Lagoonablue]

Oh poor dog and good for you for looking after her. I hope it works out for her.

Evil bastards for letting her get like this.

[CosyTeaBags]

I think you need to tell someone, either the dog warden, the RSPCA or a vets. You can't just hide her away.

I have little experience with any of the above, but surely the RSPCA won't euthanise her if they know you want her?

I think you need some proper advice. Good luck and well done for caring for her.

[Tiredemma]

Please dont send her back to wherever it is she has 'escaped' from.

Cant she just 'lie low' at yours?

( I am aware that this is possibly against the law but I have zero faith in RSPCA etc)

[longingforsomesleep]

If you're prepared to keep her I don't see why you need tell anyone. Doesn't sound like her owners are going to be too bothered about finding her. Poor girl. How lucky she is though to have found you.

We once had a greyhound tied to our gatepost in the middle of the night. She was in a dreadful state and had a broken leg. We did call the RSPCA and they came out straight away. I asked if we could keep her but they said they wouldn't allow anyone with children under 10 (I had three at the time) to take on an abused dog as it could be dangerous around children. I often think of her.