Urgent: what happens to a person's pet if they get rushed to hospital?

[Anewoneforme]

Anyone know? Do the police or RSPCA need to be informed?

There are charities that can help, i think the Cinnamon trust is one of them. Never heard of the police getting involved as someone is inpatient and dog is home alone

The local authority has a duty to ensure pets are ok and will take them to kennels etc if needed .

Call your local social services, there will be an out of hours service

I would try relatives, neighbours or friends first if possible

They get left in the house unless someone sees to it.

That's how I ended up with a cat after she'd been left alone all week.

I have a card in my wallet saying that I have pets at home, and numbers of friends to call. One had moved away but her mother was on standby anyway so I know she'd do it, or get in touch with someone else who would.

If the person concerned is already in hospital do you know who else had access who could help?

Well someone needs to be informed so they can be looked after. Nothing happens automatically though and sometimes the pets die in these circumstances. What's the situation? Who is the person? Do they have neighbours/friends/family who can help? Who are you in this?

Contact the Cinnamon Trust they will definitely know what to do.

What is the situation?

No the Cinnamon Trust won't automatically know what to do. It is entirely dependent on circumstances and who can be contacted and if the person in hospital is willing to hand the keys over to a stranger etc etc. Much more info is needed.

I’m a nurse and have previously spent hours in the middle of the night trying to get this resolved. SS will only go during normal working hours and the duty team won’t do it. They advised me to call non emergency police number. They took all the details but said due to their work load they were unable to help. Called the cinnamon trust who only returned the call at the end of the shift (7.30am) by which time the incredibly unwell patient had self discharged as his dog was his life and he wouldn’t have him left alone.

I'm a volunteer with an animal. I also live five minutes walk from the largest hospital in the area. So I've been called a number of times to go to the hospital to get the keys off a patient and to then go to their home. One time the man's ten cats had been shut in a flat for six days and he hadn't done anything about it. He happened to mention it to someone who was giving him his food and she made a big fuss and got our charity involved. And apparently she was disciplined because of it as she had neglected other duties to sort it out or something.

Anyway, without her intervention they would have all died.

The local authority has a duty to ensure pets are ok and will take them to kennels etc if needed .

What ???

LovingLola = you are absolutely right to question that - it's nonsense. There is something to that effect if the people are in Council housing and they need to go into temporary care or something - but the rules are very specific and don't apply to this sort of situation. And if the person doesn't live in Council housing they really won't do anything.

What's the situation OP????????

It's a Local Authority duty under The Care Act 2014....I've done it lots of times

Neckless - there must be more to it. I know there are situations where the LA does have a duty of care, but surely there are rules? I'm pretty sure when I went into hospital last year I couldn't have told my local authority they would have to take care of my 30 cats, even though my home is privately owned and I have plenty of money. What exactly does that Act say?

I've just found the act and it does indeed appear to be open to anyone 'until friends or family or a charity that can help can be found'. Well I'll bear that in mind next time I end up in hospital.

Well I never.

Anyway - WHAT'S THE SITUATION OP???

Sorry, it all got a bit fraught and my relative has now died.
So got to start ringing people I suppose.
I'll go over tomorrow and see if I can rescue the cat.no idea where to find a key.
I don't know what to do right now.

Oh god you poor thing

Sorry for your loss.
You can’t do anything tonight, but you should try their neighbours first, they might have a key.

The hospital may have your relative’s keys

I wouldn't do anything tonight. Cats are fairly resilient creatures assuming it has only been left today and not taking any medication. The hospital may have the key, you could ring and ask them to look and collect it tomorrow. Otherwise a locksmith should be able to gain entry. Just for now though you need to look after yourself too as you could be in shock and you need a clear mind to sort this out in the morning.

Oh no. :( so sorry OP

I hope you can get the animal sorted out. I'm sure they'll be alright for the night.

Neckless is correct, it is actually the LA responsibility. Some are more prepared than others for it though. But the first port of call is to see if any relatives can take them.

Sorry for your loss OP.