The SSPCA have lost all credibility!

[Wally]

My friend in Unst is fed up with the SSPCA. She has reported pony anfter pony with feet so over grown and neglected that they are crippled. The Farrier too has voiced concern at the state of the feet.

The SSPCA man does not want to know and just says that's the way it's done ! HE won't rock the boat and get something done about the poor animal's feet.

When he asked us to find and remove a wild pony from the hill who was crippled he said to put in a reasonable invoice to cover our costs.....wormer, de-lousing, remedial foot care, 2 hours to find her, the use of our trailer and vehicle, 24 hours quarnteened livery. We charged them £60, I thought it reasonable. He sent a memo to head office telling them only to pay a third of it!

If you are ever asked to put money in one of their boxes refuse, they are one of the richest charities and they persecute some folk and ignore genuine cases which need to be briought to the attantion of the authorities. I am well disillusioned with them.....well one of their representatives!

 

[Shiny McShine]

I have the same opinion of the RSPCA over here. Some years back the proprietor of the school I rode at had financial trouble and began neglecting his horses. He had around 25 horses in drought conditions receiving no feed and an elderly arab stallion in a dirt yard with no food nor water yet he locked the property up and would not allow anyone in.

The staff members at the time who kept their horses next door called the RSPCA immediately but with no response they turned to breaking in every night and giving the horses some feed - there was no way you could just sit and watch them starve. After repeated calls and repeated answers from them that it was not in their power to do anything it seemed like a hopeless cause.

It was four months before the RSPCA actually stepped in and confiscated the horses, by which time some had to be put down through injury and illness while the majority were massively emaiciated and were looking forward to a long recovery.

It was the saddest thing to have to see beloved horses and ponies go through that and no one in a position of authority being able to do anything.

 

[Ipsa]

I cancelled my membership to the SPCA last year after they had a 3-4 page spread in their glossy magazine about the evils of duck shooting, fox hunting(we don't have foxes in NZ), and goat shooting. It was emotive claptrap and was incredibly sujective.
I think they do good work in the cities and towns here with cats and dogs and small animals except there was another case before Xmas that really made me cross with a dog that was used for dog fighting that they rescued. The dog was vicious and they did not think it could ever be rehomed so they spent money gettiing it's wounds better and then guess what, it got stolen and used for more dog fighting, got it back and I think it was stolen again. The kindest thing would have been to put the poor animal down humanely the first time. As an exercise in PR it was abysmal.
Anyway I no longer give them money, I used to give them a set amount each month form my bank account but instead give it to the ILPH. Thank goodness we have the ILPH in NZ who as far as I have seen do a great job.

 

[maverick927]

The USPCA is a useless. i used to go to an animal sanctuary and one pony died because of the USPCA, because they took no notice.

this also happened when I first got Maverick, i kept him at stables and the girl had a pony who was so thin and never wormed, shoes falling off etc. I didn't want to rreport because we were getting the stable for free so persuaded a friend.
the officer came up and they couldn't catch the pony. He said it looked fine and even commented on her shiny coat. If only he was aware that that shiny coat was from the grease of all the cooking oil the horse was fed.
He had to check Maverick as well, a pat on the neck and he passed the test for being fine! Obviously Maverick was ok, but that is not the point, the officer didn't know that. some of these charities really aren't good at all.

 

[Cochise]

I have mixed feelings about ours. There is that horrific case about a local trekking centre here which had financial problems and starved their horses.
The SPCA and MAF were called, yet they didnt see "anything of immediate concern" this was in about May 2001. They were called repeatedly and throughout the winter months the horses were getting poorer and poorer. The SPCA just said well there is very little that they can do. The horses are covered, and they have water.
Then FINALLY after the winter was over, they stepped in and closed the place down. They took the owner to court and the owner is banned from having horses for 5 years.

http://www.equinerescuenz.freeservers.com/photo.html
I have posted this in the past but its something to think about.
This is the write up in the Christchurch Press about the court case that followed.

 

[Cochise]

Oh by the way, the SPCA here claimed to have done all they could, but the could have done much more. The were called on 10 separate incidents by 10 individual people.