AIBU to be angry about the death of a dog living in a rundown house after reporting my concerns to the RSPCA?

[LampGirl]

I'm so angry and very upset so would just like some opinions really.

Some months back I reported concerns to the RSPCA about a neighbour's dog (not a direct NDN).

The poor thing was barking, usually at night, sometimes for hours, and it appeared nobody was living (permanently at least) in the house. The house is a mess outside and we never saw the dog being walked or even in the garden, though we saw a car on the drive on occasion.

I made it completely clear to the RSPCA that I wasn't complaining about the noise, I was worried about the dog being left alone for potentially long periods and that it was very distressed.

Last week the police and RSPCA broke in and found the dog dead

I'm devastated and angry. We didn't know the dog was still in the house and we don't yet know how long he or she had been dead.

As we hadn't heard the dog since I made the report, DH and I presumed the RSPCA had taken action and removed the dog or the owner had rehomed him/her following their intervention.

I've contacted the RSPCA asking for answers with a view to making a formal complaint. Any advice please?

No advice this has just made me so angry, though unfortunately not surprised!

That's so sad, poor dog. I would want to know why they didn't act as well.

Every day I hear of more cruelty. They used to call us a nation of animal lovers, now I'm not so sure.

That's awful OP. You did try! You done your best and the poor thing was let down by those who were best equipped to help.

Not your fault 💐

Poor dog.

I don’t have a terribly high opinion of RSPCA and I would absolutely make a formal complaint about this.
You must feel very distressed.

RSPCA are shite.

Thanks. I feel terrible, I can't stop thinking about what the poor dog must have gone through.

The RSPCA is a charity that receives no government or local authority funding. They are massively over stretched and genuinely cannot cope with the volume of calls they receive. People expect them to respond like a fourth emergency service but they are not equipped to do so. In most instances of animal cruelty it is best to find local assistance (e.g. welfare groups on Facebook) or intervene yourself, sadly.
OP well done for trying for that poor dog.

You assume a charity reliant on public funds, has the resources or staff to be everywhere. your anger should be reserved for the owner

Please don't get me wrong, I'm furious with the owner as well. But I reported it to the RSPCA, I know they visited the house and nobody was there, and now the dog is dead.

YABU. Just because you may have occasionally dropped a couple of quid into a collecting tin doesn't mean that they magically have enough resources to allow every report made to them to be followed up immediately. I would assume their staff have a caseload like everyone else.

With respect, I reported my concerns months ago. The RSPCA attended and got no response initially. It seems (I’m asking for answers from them) they did not follow this up and now the dog has been found dead in an empty house.

That's awful, but I'm not surprised, I've found the rspca to be pretty useless. Poor dog

This is so sad, that poor dog!

What follow up should they have done though? You need the police to break in and it is pretty difficult to get the police to come out to anything these days. I'm not sure they'd agree to break into a house based on one report.

I'm not saying don't ask what went wrong but at least try to do so w an open mind.

You assume a charity reliant on public funds

Maybe the CEO could donate some of their massive salary back to the pot...

But of course. Charities should be run and staffed by people on the nmw. Or volunteers.

RSPCA have no powers to kick down doors and rescue dogs, even when they do get to see pets they are reluctant to take the animals in, no space for housing. They may well have spoken with the owner and agreed a way forward but the owner didn't do his/her bit.

Do you know why/how the dog died?

I think you need to wait until you know the facts. the RSPCA can’t break into people’s house. They need a court warrant and police assistance. To gain a court warrant they need proof the dog has been abandoned. If they had contacted the owner and the owner had said the dog was fine etc then they would need further proof to break in. All this takes time.
By all means ask for clarification but be aware due to gdpr they cannot always tell you all the details.

The rspca are over stretched and under funded. The frontline inspectors are animal lovers and would not and do not just leave animals to die.

RSPCA are worse than useless

This is quite normal for the RSPCA. Take a look at The SHG for RSPCA problems on facebook, there are hundreds of stories just like this one.

Send an e-mail to [email protected] and cc it to the media and your MP. Chris Sherwood is the Chief Executive of the RSPCA.

What haribolecter said. For future reference, report to the police. Even lie and say you're concerned there may be a human in danger hence the barking. Most forces will investigate this sort of thing.

Of course the RSPCA get government funding. That is the whole point of being a charity. They don't pay VAT or inheritance tax. They get a mandatory discount of 80% on business rates, and some councils make up the other 20%. There are lots of other financial benefits which are listed online.

The RSPCA has been spending millions of £££s on rebuilding their centres. Why when they can't even deal with the animals they are supposed to help. They were criticised in the Wooler report. They should refer investigations and prosecution to the police and get on with actually helping animals in need.

They visited the houe, no one was on - there isnt a lot more they can do, they have absolutely no authority to break down doors etc.

Do you know who the house was owned by? Is the owner sectioned/in hospital/dead?

Maybe the CEO could donate some of their massive salary back to the pot... Do you work for nothing ? or work at all ? The RSPCA dont publish salaries so how do you know what the CEO may or may not get?