To ask about your opinion on the RSPCA after Brian May resignation

I’m currently
being harassed by them for what will turn about to be (again) a malicious complaint. The last time even though they knew it had no truth, they offered to help us with a sick puppy. Kept
forgetting to collect him. We finally arranged a time as he was poorly and he died on the way to hospital!!!

Thank you @Feckedupbundle Your heart is in the right place.

I would never donate to the RSPCA.

I've contacted them on a few occasions over the past 10 years, and only once did they offer a miniscule amount of assistance. In that instance I still had to trap the extremely feral cat, transport it to the vets, collect it again and rehome it. The RSPCA agreed to pay for the vet bill if I did all the work!

I used to donate to them regularly but stopped after they a) refused to help us with a feral cat (different to the one mentioned above) & her 4 kittens, & b) they wrote and said basically said my £10 a month wasn't enough so I should increase it to £25!!!! I'd supported them for years, bought endless raffle tickets, sent extra money at Christmas etc but that still wasn't enough according to the condescending and arrogant fundraising appeal letter! They've not had a penny since, & neither has Cat's Protection as they're just as bad.

The times we’ve tried to get them out at work and they just refuse . Then rung me back days later to try and get a subscription!

This though , this was shocking .

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3232322/RSPCA-shoots-11-HEALTHY-horses-Charity-culled-bright-alert-responsible-animals-continued-claim-vet-stable-fees-months-deaths.html

Anyone would think they were only after the money.

Yes but unfortunately the public perception is that they are out there rescuing abused or neglected animals, hence the large inflow of donations.

If it was more widely realised that their main focus is legal and campaigning then no doubt they would be a less popular charity. Shame the volunteer organisations who do more of the real rescue work can't access the same level of funds

3 times I've contacted them and 3 times they've refused to come out and told me to either ignore the animal or try and find a local charity to help. In addition to that, they suggested having a healthy cat who belonged to a family member put to sleep when she needed rehoming.

They were also uninterested when I reported a group of travellers who were hunting rabbits with slingshots. Had to contact the police instead.

I've far more confidence in the work my local volunteer run charities do and much happier to support them.

I remember 10-15 years ago they got a lot of criticism and calls of hypocrisy for using bolt guns on dogs

Didn't want anything to do with a cat that turned up at the rental I was in. Everything was left to me

I took her in but had to hand her over to the Cats Protection League as my own cats were due to join us.

I will never ever give any money to them again

Not worth a penny of anyone's money. They are useless unless part of a televised rescue.

This has been known for years but the gullible keep on giving and they sit on their fat salaries and do nothing. If their money was split between charities who actually care and act, the animal world would be a better place.

Not a charity I would ever support.

My opinion of Brian May was already high, this has confirmed it.

Horses again.

RSPCA man: "Who owns them?"

Me: "Not sure, does it matter?"

RSPCA man: "If one of them were dead, it's better as it helps us with our cause"

Then he fucked off.

RSPCA banked £75 million from unspent donations last three years. People should really do their research before donating to ANY charity. So much creamed off in 'projects' that the real cause has been lost long ago.

I have called them on three separate occasions for an animal in distress. They have refused to assist every time. They like to give the impression that they help animals in these circumstances but imo, they only respond when there is a tv camera watching them.

They may well be underfunded or misappropriating funds, but failing to properly investigate a vet (whose job it is to look after animals) who is still operating beggars belief. I was in touch with a barrister for the RCVS at the time and even he felt that it was awful that this vet was left to continue to practise.

Money is better spent supporting local animal charities rather than RSPCA.

I can believe this.A similar thing happened to my old neighbour. She had an elderly pony with Cushing's disease,under treatment from the vet,on medication,and doing very well on it. With Cushings,they are prone to laminitis,so are best kept on the lighter side, and definitely should never be let to get overweight.
The RSPCA tried to accuse her of mistreating her,and when my neighbour showed evidence of vets visits and very expensive medication,tried to say that "they didn't recognise that vets". Yep,only the best known equine vets in the area. They are a shocking organisation and I will never give them a penny.

We called them (and the police) about a pony that was being abused in front of our very eyes! Neither would do anything! Wouldn’t even come to have a look!

I've reported horses being kept tied up short with no access to food or water for days. They were so sad and really skinny. As soon as the RSPCA found out travellers were involved they refused to do anything.

I also wanted to adopt a cat while I had young children. Went to the RSPCA and they pressured me to take home a cat that was aggressive and scratched my 4yo! Such a different experience at an independent cat rescue up the road. They encouraged us to stay for ages and play with the cats to see which one was just right for us. I'd never go back to the RSPCA.

They need reserves of at least three months running costs, which if they spend £140 million a year is £34 million plus enough for ending various contracts and leases and paying staff redundancy payments.

A Google suggests they had £90 million in 2021 with their target being £75-100 million. Presumably at that level they also get some income from the reserves.

I can't comment on the service they provide really - I called them out once for an injured fox cub and someone did come out and collect the poor thing.

Phoned to report a dog being kept in bad conditions, apparently as It had a bowl of water it was fine!😡 Not impressed. I suspect they are like most animal charities, overwhelmed by the sheer scale. However, they do get lots of money.

I actually had a good experience with the rspca who came and cut a fox loose who’d got caught in next doors netting

having said that I think their strength is in the legal side of animal welfare- the actual prosecuting and convicting humans who cause suffering.

they should ditch the other side as there are plenty of other services that will do that, and from pp it would seem they know that and offload that side anyway.

stick to what they’re good at- lawyers, court and criminal cases involving animals.

I've never found the RSPCA any use. We are farmers and get a lot of abandoned pets dumped out in the countryside. Experience has taught us never to involve the RSPCA as they will not help. Any local finding waifs and strays brings them to us and we keep them or find them homes or a shelter run by another charity. That is why we found homes for over 30 cats and kittens one particularly bad year,and why we had 13 cats that no one else wanted, on the farm.

I reported some men hunting badgers with dogs on some land near me. No action taken.

They've moved away from actual animal welfare to only going for those where they can secure a prosecution IMO or something that will be media worthy.

The knowledge isn't that good either tbh, I had dealings with them a few years ago over a laminitic pony who wore a muzzle when grazing, was under the vet and this was part of the management. I was reported more than once and I fully complied with them, access to the pony, vet reports etc. One officer didn't know what laminitis is and accused me of making it up when I explained too much sugar can cause a painful foot condition in some, especially native ponies. I mean it's a pretty basic condition that affects many horses and ponies, which if you're inspecting an animal for it's welfare, you should probably know about and understand the basics of the management of that condition. A muzzle being one of the most effective as it restricts intake, promotes trickle feeding and allows them to be in a field with the herd instead of inside all the time. Was advised by a vet with probably 10 years training, plus many years experience to muzzle the pony during the day and bring in at night for a balance between keeping the laminitis at bay and giving as normal life as possible. But apparently that wasn't good enough.

Another said that the pony didn't have access to water because of the muzzle - despite the hole in the bottom designed to allow trickle feeding and drinking being really quite evident.

I felt that they were seeking a removal and prosecution rather than genuinely being interested in the welfare of the pony tbh.

These stories are shocking. What do they actually do then?

Unfortunately I’ve had 2 bad experiences with them

first time they did come out but were so unpleasant and rude to us I wish I had found someone else

the second time (don’t know why I called them after the first time) they wouldn’t come out but they can’t even help with other places to call. If they don’t want to attend or don’t have the staff then creating a database of shelters or other rescues would be helpful