Is this animal cruelty and how can I help to stop it?

[Lulooo]

I know very little about dogs or how to look after a dog so bear with me please. There’s a piece of land next to my house that is rented out by some young lads. They come there most nights and hang about there most of the night in a caravan. Or they come during the evenings and leave at night. I can smell weed most nights and not sure what other drugs they take. They have a dog that is tied up there and left there at all times. It’s almost always chained up. It’s a pit bull, I think but not sure.

The dog barks continuously throughout the night almost non-stop. It also barks for much of the day. Sometimes it barks so much that it seems to lose its voice and then just whimpers all the time.

We don’t ever see the dog exercised or walked. Sometimes they come to play with it and do some stupid game like throw water on it with a hose or yank at its chain and pull it close, let go, yank again and repeat. It’s obviously fed otherwise it wouldn’t survive but I don’t see much other care.

Theres no love shown to the dog and it’s just used as a status symbol as far as I can see. I never see anyone playing with it and the dogs barking has been going on for weeks now.

We tried talking to the boys themselves but they were dismissive and laughed it off. We tried calling the RSPCA and each time we rang, they listened and said they don’t do anything about domestic dogs. We’ve rang them three times now to no avail.

it’s almost midnight and the dog has been barking again for the past 6 hours and I honestly can’t sleep. But tbh, it’s not just the noise that bothered me but the inhumane way the dog is treated and left to it’s own devices. Why keep a pet if you can’t look after it!

What can I do? Is there anyone else I can call who will be able to intervene?

Does anyone know how the RSPCA get away with being so famously shit and sketchy?

Surely there must be a review / overhaul of the charity at some point?

OP I’m sorry I don’t have anything new to add.

OP if you get nowhere with the council try Googling dog rescues (especially ones who specialise in bull breeds) in your area and ring round a few asking if they deal with cruelty cases at all. We have a fantastic local one and I know they've been involved before with cases like this, they usually try to negotiate with the owners to surrender the dog first but I know the police have assisted them on occasion and they always seem to get the dogs to safety. Worth a try, PM me if you happen to be West Midlands based and I'll send you their details.

@DobbleKnobble yes, I can answer that.
basically laws governing animal welfare cover all animals that are domesticated for human benefit, not just pets.
that includes working animals and, unfortunately animals farmed for food.
so if it’s legal to factory farms say chickens. Or pigs, then to legally allow that treatment, it follows that it is then allowed for other animals too.
I’m not a vegetarian and I’m not trying to start a bun fight, but everyone wants cheap meat and a dairy, and keeping animals in a humane way is costly and people are not prepared to pay for it, or go without sometimes. You only have to look at the queue for Kentucky drive through to understand that 99% of the population really do not care about an animal welfare.
So, essentially if this dog has access to water, shelter and is fed, then by law it’s basic needs are met. So the only angle you can help this dog on, is by really pushing the ‘fighting dog’ angle.

im not looking to start a debate on cost of living and ‘people need cheap food etc’. I’m simply trying to explain why the RSPCA seem like they don’t help. The fact is they aren’t allowed to. But they aren’t good an exhaling that. They will potter along and see an elderly lady about a skinny pony. Because they will try and assist and educate and sign post.
A gang of druggy youths who know exactly what they are doing is different. Would you want to confront that for minimum wage?

@Cantbeliveyoufakeit thats very good advice

The dog barks continuously throughout the night almost non-stop. It also barks for much of the day. Sometimes it barks so much that it seems to lose its voice and then just whimpers all the time

Is the dog there chained up 24/7 or just when the boys are there?

It's probably unlikely to be a pitbull. It's just as likely to be some mixed breed or a staffie x. Poor bloody thing.

Anyway, you're more likely to get a response if you tell the plods the dog being trained and used to guard the large stash of drugs in the caravan.

Stop being so bloody rude Squiff. It's obvious that Op has been trying to get help and is going to continue.

Report the barking dog to the council as a 'noise nuisance' as it barks all the time. Tell them the rest of the situation as well.

Email (not phone) the RSPCA and refer to this page of their website

www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/pets/dogs/environment/livingoutside

Specifically quote this:

Tethering or restraining dogs - we believe that dogs should not be tethered or chained, except for very short periods, as restraining a dog in this way can lead to injuries and also restrict normal behaviour, which can be very damaging to the dog's wellbeing.

and

Social needs - always make sure your dog is able to behave normallyy^ and is provided with the opportunity for daily exercise, play and interaction with animals and people. Making sure your dog has appropriate companyy^ is an important consideration for outdoor dogs.

Ask them, if the RSPCA and police aren't going to help, then what do they suggest you do, because you're concerned that the owners' legal duty of care to the dog is not being met.

Hi OP

I feel from your post that you are maybe wary about calling the police as you want to stay anonymous and are maybe worried about repercussions and I can see why especially given the response you had when you spoke to these boys about the dog. You can always report through crime stoppers instead so the police still get the info you need but you will be anonymous.

crimestoppers-uk.org/

I'd say what the previous posters have said that it is possible that it is being trained as a fighting dog and your concerns are that it is being abused due to their treatment of it.

Sorry that was meant to say the info they need

That is terrible cruelty. Does the poor dog even have shelter from the sun at least? The rspca don’t deal with domestic dogs? Really? I’ve heard it all now. What is the point of them exactly? I would contact the police. Even if they take the poor animal and have it put to sleep it would be kinder than it having to endure the life it’s having now.

I’m not in the UK but what about privately owned organisations? Dog rescues/animal welfare sort of thing.

The police would put a job on to assess whether it's a pit bull and they have the powers legally to seize the dog .
There are dedicated dog liaison officers (DLO) who have banned breed training , and screening officers who know what to look for to see if it's a banned breed. Even if it isn't - they can still seize the dog under the animal welfare act if it's being cruelly treated.
Please report to 101 because they won't treat it as a priority and it will still take days to get someone out but they WILL do something about it . Rspca and council probably won't .

Sorry op
Just see your update - unless you mentioned the fact you suspect it could be a pit bull they won't act - and you've rung a call handler not a police officer.

If you want to remain anon ri g 101 again - tell them you suspect it's a pit bull (from my experience the mention of a caravan , wasteland , tied up , but you have to tell them you think it could be a pit bull because that's the legal obligation to check sorted - and they will if you say that .

I would do it on your behalf if you want me to , if you tell me where it is - I can email forcecontrol directly. But the reason they've dismissed it is because you haven't said it might be a pit bull, and you haven't said they attend to spray it with water and rile it . They way it is beinng treated I will bet my 13 years in the job - they'll be known to police and it's a dog for the purpose of fighting . If you say the right thing they will check .

I've looked at 4 of these jobs today - please just use the magic words "pit bull" type dog - essentially your first call to 101 was taken as a noise complaint.

Even if it isn't a pit bull police would still check it and probably seize it due to the conditions it's being kept in .

Please also bear in mind that the kind of men you're talking about often cut their ears to make them less recognisable as a pit bull - but police can tell from other markers .

Just say you suspect it could be a pit bull type dog . Stay anon . That's all they'll need .

I mean I don't really like dogs myself but for god's sake what an awful way to treat an animal. Bastards.

Please take action OP. Do anything you can. Could you try ringing a dog rescue near you, see if they'll step in? Surely the dog is basically a stray if it's being left all night? God I wouldn't be able to stand by, I'd waiver my anonymity if I had to.

In what ways have they been shit and sketchy over your complaints? Something should be done about that.

Please don’t ignore this problem, what an awful life for this poor dog. Tell everyone you know, the more complaints the more chance of saving this poor animal 😭

Any updates OP?

That response from the RSPCA is piss poor.

The animal is permanently tied up and abandoned almost all the time, it is left in a distressed state all night, and when people turn up they are deliberately cruel to it.

WTF are the RSPCA supposed to be for, if they're not rescuing animals being kept in those conditions?

Does the dog have access to shade and a supply of drinking water?

I wouldn't give the RSPCA the time of day. They are useless.

Some years ago now, I had some scummy neighbours (I have moved since then) who had a falling out with me because I reported them for various law breaking. So they made a malicious complaint that my dog had algae growing on his feet and was neglected! Yes honestly, algae! The inspector came around, and I was delighted to show them an well treated algae free dog, although I did ask them how the hell they thought dogs grew algae on their feet.

Anyway several weeks later, when I was at work, another neighbour filmed them beating one of their own dogs, literally beating and kicking it until it was screaming in pain and unable to stand. The neighbour called the police and the RSPCA. The RSPCA had the footage of all this, but said that since the dog had "disappeared" and there was no body, then they wouldn't be taking any action. The neighbours told them they had rehomed the dog (in the few hours since they kicked it around the yard) and the RSPCA believed them - or if they didn't believe them they did nothing to ascertain the dogs whereabouts.

Alternatively, sadly dogs have been known to escape and wonder off. If it happened to wonder off and got reported, or ended up at a rescue.....

Just an update on this for those who were concerned: the dog seems to be taken away for a good portion of the day now. It doesn’t bark as much but it does still bark in the night. Just not as continuously as before.
I’ve reported it to the council too. And I am keeping an eye on things and taking notes and video records too. So if I do need to report anything again I have some sort of evidence.

Thank you to everyone who offered advice.

It's possible some action was taken if they've altered their behaviour.

Well done for your persistence, OP.

I'm sorry to be a party pooper but it's also quite possible that it's taken for a pet of the day to train it either to hunt or fight .

I have no idea why this is so hard to believe. Happens all the time .
I'm working today and have come across 3 incidents on for possible banned breed dogs and one dog bite incident. I dealt with some youths a while ago for having a pit bull. Didn't keep it at home as didn't want parents to know . They were training it to kill . Someone told police when they were seen at night , on wasteland with a tiny spaniel puppy that they gave it to kill. They had also cut the pit biills ears into points to try and disguise the fact it was a pit bull . Wonder how many local pets went missing before it was seized . Wonder how many fights it would have had to endure.
The responsible thing here would be to anonymously report a suspected banned breed pit bull for police to at least take a gander at and assess it - op never told police it might be a banned breed just that it was barking all day and night - a barking dog isn't an offence for police - but a banned breed is . If it's not a pit bull they won't take any further action if it's being cared for - but if it is , and my coppers nose here is twitching- they'd seize it because the police deal with stuff that's illegal and pitbulls are . I hope
Someone does the right thing here but my sense is that no one cares that much , or people
Don't want to think this happens . 🤷🏻‍♀️

Well done OP.