Never going back to RSPCA waste of time

[weeble]

The problem with the RSPCA is that people forget its a charity and that whilst the main HQ may be seen to have cash the individual branches dont and some are in danger of closing

Surely it would make more sense to be angry at the governments past and present for allowing animal welfare issues to be dealt with by a charity rather than doing something about it themselves

 

[AnyBunny]

The problem with the RSPCA is that people forget its a charity and that whilst the main HQ may be seen to have cash the individual branches dont and some are in danger of closing

Surely it would make more sense to be angry at the governments past and present for allowing animal welfare issues to be dealt with by a charity rather than doing something about it themselves

This isn't a problem of animal welfare being dealt with by a charity, it's a problem of a charity which has forgotten what it was created to do. If work on the ground is suffering because branches are not being properly funded, then perhaps the fatcats at RSPCA HQ should take a good, hard look at their priorities. Setting out plans for sustainable funding that don't entail spending millions on court cases over wills might be a start.

 

[Edward Hawkins]

The problem with the RSPCA is that it seems to have become an essentially political organisation which has been captured by fanatics and activists and is only prepared to turn out and do something if there's money or publicity to be had from it. When I identified a group of rabbits in need of help, it proved impossible to get any sense or action through RSPCA hotline, although I reported that I thought the rabbits concerned were in significant danger. Something was only done because I spoke informally and by chance to someone else, known to many on this board, who knew the local RSPCA inspector for the area personally and talked him into investigating.

Put bluntly, it's an organisation I would never dream of volunteering for or giving money to.

I am neither a fanatic nor an activist. I give my time to the RSPCA because I want to help the animals. I mainly work in the shop but also answer telephones calls. The calls are mostly people wanting to have an animal rehomed or wanting a free neutering. These things cost money. There is not enough money. If more money was available then there would be more inspectors available to follow up on calls from the public. There are not enough inspectors. There are not enough volunteers. There are, however, plenty of people like you willing to **** off the RSPCA at any oppurtunity they get.

 

[Jack's-Jane]

I am still at a loss as to why local RSPCA branches apparently receive no funding from HQ. I have asked the question before, but why go under the banner of an organisation that gives you (local Branches) nothing. I am not trying to provoke an argument or bash the RSPCA. I just dont understand the logic in how a VERY wealth Charity can ignore the financial plight of the local branches who carry the RSPCA title.

Maybe local branches would actually do better going it alone. It seems that all carrying the RSPCA title does for local branches is lay them open to criticism because of the public's opinion of the RSPCA as a whole ??

 

[weeble]

This isn't a problem of animal welfare being dealt with by a charity, it's a problem of a charity which has forgotten what it was created to do. If work on the ground is suffering because branches are not being properly funded, then perhaps the fatcats at RSPCA HQ should take a good, hard look at their priorities. Setting out plans for sustainable funding that don't entail spending millions on court cases over wills might be a start.

Quite but that doesnt mean it has lost its way at branch level there are a lot of staff and volunteers who work very hard under very difficult circumstances and it can be very disheartening for them to be lumped in with the fatcats

 

[Sky-O]

I personally give my time to the RSPCA because I want to make a difference to the animals I am involved with- and I believe that I do. If that makes me a fanatic or activist, then so be it. At least I know I'm doing my part to help those animals and doing a darn sight more than most other people around them.

I definitely understand that people have had bad experiences with the RSPCA (yes, I'm one of them), but when people talk about 'the RSPCA' it's often inaccurate and due to the way it's worded it is clear how little the person talking about it really realises about how it works and is run and what it entials. It would be like talking about 'the school' and all schools being brandished under that bracket, when they are separate entities.

Jane, I remember you asking that before, but I don't know the answer. I think whilst it brings negativity, it also brings positively too.

 

[weeble]

I am still at a loss as to why local RSPCA branches apparently receive no funding from HQ. I have asked the question before, but why go under the banner of an organisation that gives you (local Branches) nothing. I am not trying to provoke an argument or bash the RSPCA. I just dont understand the logic in how a VERY wealth Charity can ignore the financial plight of the local branches who carry the RSPCA title.

Maybe local branches would actually do better going it alone. It seems that all carrying the RSPCA title does for local branches is lay them open to criticism because of the public's opinion of the RSPCA as a whole ??

I 'think' local branches do get 'some' funding from HQ but not a huge amount, that money is spent on inspectors cruelty cases etc. Local branches charge HQ a kenneling fee for the cruelty cases they have in. Dont forget most branches have between 5 and 10 paid staff plus all the food heating rent and other overheads

 

[AnyBunny]

There are, however, plenty of people like you willing to **** off the RSPCA at any oppurtunity they get.

Perhaps if they had done what they were supposed to do, I wouldn't have reason to "**** them off". I made no fewer than 3 phone calls to the hotline about that group of rabbits over 2 weeks, two of them pleading for something to be done. When the inspector finally visited the site, more than half the rabbits I had seen had died of cold and hunger in the intervening weeks.

For an organisation whose income is around £115,000,000 per year, that's not good enough.

 

[Jack's-Jane]

Perhaps if they had done what they were supposed to do, I wouldn't have reason to "**** them off". I made no fewer than 3 phone calls to the hotline about that group of rabbits over 2 weeks, two of them pleading for something to be done. When the inspector finally visited the site, more than half the rabbits I had seen had died of cold and hunger in the intervening weeks.

For an organisation whose income is around £115,000,000 per year, that's not good enough.

:shock:

 

[Edward Hawkins]

It is possible to download the Annual Report from the RSPCA website. Reading this will help to dispel some myths. Look at the names of the people at the top. They are hardly activists and extremists. Look at the number of RSPCA inspectors and compare the numbers with the number of police, ambulance etc. You will then realise how they cannot respond in the same way that the emergency services do. Look at the reserves. The RSPCA is not extremely rich. There are enough reserves to keep going for 4-5 months.

http://www.rspca.org.uk/ImageLocator/LocateAsset?asset=document&assetId=1232725816136&mode=prd

 

[AnyBunny]

I 'think' local branches do get 'some' funding from HQ but not a huge amount, that money is spent on inspectors cruelty cases etc. Local branches charge HQ a kenneling fee for the cruelty cases they have in. Dont forget most branches have between 5 and 10 paid staff plus all the food heating rent and other overheads

The problem is that all of this cross-charging is inefficient. So is having franchised and [semi-] independent branches ostensibly carrying out the actual work while not being properly funded. Another problem is that the RSPCA has around 25 trustees - far, FAR too many for effective and efficient management and governance. Even Royal Dutch Shell plc, one of the largest companies in the world, has only 14 directors. Barclays Bank plc has only 12. Why does a national charity need twice as many trustees as a "fat cat" corporate giant has directors?

What the RSPCA needs is a root and branch reform of its organisation and operations, to cut all the political stuff and get back to basics. With no more than 10 trustees running it, and running it effectively.

And I say this both as a chartered secretary (and therefore as a corporate governance professional) and as a member of the audit committee of another national animal welfare charity.

 

[Sky-O]

Even with all that, they still can't implement laws that are not yet there. They need more powers and the only people who can sort that are in the Government.

 

[Becky86]

OP, im sorry you had a bad experience with your branch, but please don't tar all RSPCA branches with the same brush.

RSPCA branches don't recieve any funding at all from HQ. The Inspectors work for HQ, they are paid, so when you see an advert and people call and donate, the money is being used for things like paying Inspectors. Inspectors have nothing at all to do with the branches, when we take an animal from an Inspector, the animal gets signed over from the Inspector (HQ) to the branch. All money we spend at our branch is raised by us in branch - we have no paid members of staff, we are all volunteers. I spend 12 hours some days doing admin work/answering phones/keeping in touch with fosterers/fetching animals that need our help/vets trips the list is endless. Im the first port of call at our branch and yes sometimes it might take me 3/4 days to return a call but i try my best. If i don't return a call within a few hours and someone isn't happy, they then go slating the 'RSPCA' and not just our branch.

The thing is, yes the RSPCA do get alot of flack, but we have more people who support us than who don't. People generally have the problems with HQ, but the branches suffer.

Why do i do it? because i love animals, because i want to give something back. Unless you are involved in the RSPCA im not sure how you can give an opinion, go and volunteer at a branch for a week and come back and give your opinion - i'd love a week off

 

[Edward Hawkins]

What the RSPCA needs is a root and branch reform of its organisation and operations, to cut all the political stuff and get back to basics.

What polictical stuff do you mean. The RSPCA council and members come from all polictical parties.
Do you mean campaigning against bloodsports?

 

[prettylupin]

We saw a boy bunny on our local rspca site. All it said was male neutered, nothing else, couldnt get them on the phone so saw that the enquiries was 10am on Saturdays so me and the kids went, only to be told we couldnt view or talk to anyone till 11am, so we went back for 11 along with the application form and id.

At 11 we were told that they were skeleton staff on weekends and they hadnt time for me! I asked the 'rabbit man' if he could tell me how big one particular bun was and if he was young or old. He made size actions with his hands and said adult. I suggested maybe the size of a german lop, erm maybe not sure was the reply. so asked about another that i had seen asking him how big, how old. Oh yes that one he said, erm hes very clean. Right but how big, erm well, more hand actions, erm he might be a bit smaller than the other one but I cant show you, have a home check then come and look then if you see one then come back with your girl then if they get on ok then come back again and collect him. At this point we walked out! do they want to rehome bunnies or not. Our original 2 were from the and they were great then but I can say I shall never go back again.

So we rang a local rescue, Sues rabbit rescue, they were available for us to view today, we went we fell in love and we reserved a boy, our 3rd bunnie from them. In future I will just go there.

I really do appreciate that the rspca are busy but had they said at 10 that they were understaffed on a weekend when most people go then i could have gone tomorrow but as the conversation 'progressed' with the village idiot it became clear that cos it was only a bunny they werent interested.

Mentioning Sue's rabbit rescue makes me think you are Hampshire based? Wondering if you went to Stubbington or Ashley Heath if that is the case? :wave:

 

[Hugo's There]

OP, im sorry you had a bad experience with your branch, but please don't tar all RSPCA branches with the same brush.

RSPCA branches don't recieve any funding at all from HQ. The Inspectors work for HQ, they are paid, so when you see an advert and people call and donate, the money is being used for things like paying Inspectors. Inspectors have nothing at all to do with the branches, when we take an animal from an Inspector, the animal gets signed over from the Inspector (HQ) to the branch. All money we spend at our branch is raised by us in branch - we have no paid members of staff, we are all volunteers. I spend 12 hours some days doing admin work/answering phones/keeping in touch with fosterers/fetching animals that need our help/vets trips the list is endless. Im the first port of call at our branch and yes sometimes it might take me 3/4 days to return a call but i try my best. If i don't return a call within a few hours and someone isn't happy, they then go slating the 'RSPCA' and not just our branch.

The thing is, yes the RSPCA do get alot of flack, but we have more people who support us than who don't. People generally have the problems with HQ, but the branches suffer.

Why do i do it? because i love animals, because i want to give something back. Unless you are involved in the RSPCA im not sure how you can give an opinion, go and volunteer at a branch for a week and come back and give your opinion - i'd love a week off

:thumb:

 

[Jettychops]

Think it is fair to say for every bad experience adopting wise from RSPCA there are equally postive adoptions like us who went via the RSPCA

 

[madcatwoman]

Mentioning Sue's rabbit rescue makes me think you are Hampshire based? Wondering if you went to Stubbington or Ashley Heath if that is the case? :wave:

No we live near Bradford West Yorkshire, Sues rescue is in Dewsbury a nearby town. Have to say when I posted my original comment on my experience at the rspca I never anticipated all this. I went to the Bradford branch and had the lady on my first visit of the day explained the problems they were having and listened properly to our situation it would have been fine and I would have happily returned at a later date. But going back an hour later with the kids deflated then excited then to be deflated again got my back up, and then the 'rabbit mans' attitude was unacceptable, I am sure if I was wanting to take a couple of the many staffie dogs they have they would have been more amenable.

Anyway 'Dillon' is now waiting in the wings for our female to recover from spaying and him to recover from neutering then we can begin the fun of bonding on female territory! watch this space.....