Animal Frontline on BBC 1 - now I don't usually condone the RSPCA bashing but.....

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Patterdale

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......it's really winding me up! They know NOTHING about horses.
This woman has just been berating an owner of a tethered horse. The horse was a cob in very good condition, and she was asking him what hes feeding him. The man said 'well, grass!' And she responded by telling him in a very patronising way that horses need haylage because there's not enough goodness in grass.
They seem to be good with the dogs and cats but bloody clueless about the horses!
 
Just seen the same thing, ridiculous! Horse was a bit too fat in my eyes, certainly not in need of any extra feed (or a stable for that matter!)
Don't agree with tethering though, too much potential to go horribly wrong.
 
Patterdale said:
......it's really winding me up! They know NOTHING about horses.
This woman has just been berating an owner of a tethered horse. The horse was a cob in very good condition, and she was asking him what hes feeding him. The man said 'well, grass!' And she responded by telling him in a very patronising way that horses need haylage because there's not enough goodness in grass.
They seem to be good with the dogs and cats but bloody clueless about the horses!
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Not just me then. Cob - haylage? Erm . . .

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I once called the RSPCA over a tethered horse I found on a dog walk on a hot day.

The cob was black, there was no shade and it was boiling hot. The poor thing had no water at all.

They were more concerned that there was no food other than grass available..

I ended up going back with water for the poor thing and left a note for owners myself.
 
I just think that when the lay public see an RSPCA inspector on tv complaining about cobs 'standing in mud' 'not wearing blankets' with 'only grass to eat' in winter, it will just give people a totally distorted view of what cruelty actually is.

Fwiw I don't like to see horses tethered but if they're healthy then I think there are bigger fish to fry.
 
I also saw that, the horse was stood against a huge wall and the officer was complaining there was no shelter
 
You should put in a complaint to the BBC, it's more likely to get somewhere.

I don't think they can allow false information to be broadcast without a disclaimer so it's possible the RSPCA might listen if the BBC has to make an announcement.
 
I tried to watch this on catch up the other day. I got five minutes into it before it went off. I cannot stand those idiots and that 'sarf london' women .. her voice is like nails down a blackboard .. SHUT UP WOMAN!!!!!
 
Patterdale said:
I just think that when the lay public see an RSPCA inspector on tv complaining about cobs 'standing in mud' 'not wearing blankets' with 'only grass to eat' in winter, it will just give people a totally distorted view of what cruelty actually is.

Fwiw I don't like to see horses tethered but if they're healthy then I think there are bigger fish to fry.
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I agree with everything you've written . . . if those horses had been hat racks with poor feet and a relatively fine coat then they'd have had a point. However, viewing public have no idea about rugging, nutrition, etc. for particular breeds. I do, though, think the inspector was right about the ponies' lacking adequate water.

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I didn't watch it but from personal experience with the RSPCA I think they are a joke when it comes to horses !
Horse at our yard got into very poor condition was hidden under a rug in summer , phoned RSPCA they weren't bothered , the inspector told me she had seen a lot worse , I replied with I'm actually sorry for you if you've seen so much worse that this doesn't bother you !
Vet was called and horse was pts , so if that's not bad i don't know what is !
Vet also gave RSPCA a word of advice lol , my vet doesn't mince his words !
 
Antw23uk said:
Oh well when you put it like that ... All you 24/7 keeper outters are bad bad people and im reporting you all :rolleyes:
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Well you are probably right my two that were lying flat out in the sunshine this morning and are now pottering around munching grass would I'm sure be much happier in a stable 22 hours with an hour in the morning and afternoon on a horsewalker!
I've always thought how much like a hampster my boy is !
 
I once took a non horsey friend to see my horse, who was tucked up for the night in a brand new shavings bed, having just changed from straw. First thing she said 'They're just like big, expensive hamsters really aren't they?'
Er, no! But did make me laugh :D
 
Patterdale said:
I once took a non horsey friend to see my horse, who was tucked up for the night in a brand new shavings bed, having just changed from straw. First thing she said 'They're just like big, expensive hamsters really aren't they?'
Er, no! But did make me laugh :D
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What asleep all day and bite when you wake them up? ... :p
 
Yeah pretty much! Haha!
Also, they seem like a good idea at the time, then 2 months on you can't think why you bought the blooming thing, and even on the days you do feel inspired to go and bond with it, it just runs around and you can't catch it :D
 
Patterdale forgive me that is not quite what the officer said is it? She said " you should get a stable and field sorted before buying a horse, much like you should have somewhere to put a hamster before buying it. These people have gone a bought a horse for a fiver at the market without having somewhere to put it so they are then just tethered up on public land" sound advice if you ask me.
 
Yes, but I was referring to when she was talking about the black horse by the wall. She was saying she'd be much happier if she could see him in a stable etc. the whole implication of what she was saying was that horses should be rugged and stabled, which I think gives off the wrong impression to the general public.
 
I haven't seen the programme but have had bad experiences with RSPCA officers knowing little about horses. MillyMoomie, you haven't clarified if the officer did make the comment about a cob needing haylage as well as grass ?
 
I CAN see what your saying. The black cobby type was obviously in good body condition, which was noted, and OBVIOUSLY did not need any haylage as she said, but that horse would have turned that tethering circle into mud in an hour, it would have needed something else to eat. you also have to look at the initial reason the officer was attending in the first place. People were saying the owner wasn't taking care of him and were doing it themselves ( moving him daily etc as per tethering defra codes of practice). So what does the officer want, the owner to take some responsibility? To get the horse in a more suitable location? As far as 'shelter' goes, the cob couldn't stay at that lovely wall forever, you are meant to move the tether daily for obvious reasons. The officer didn't have a go at the owner or even say horses can only live in a stable etc, she didn't even say the cob needed a rug to him. She simply asked if the owner had any plans in place to move the horse to a more suitable location. Haylage? Wrong sort yes. But not everyone can have the same sort of knowledge as you and me. At the end of the day the horse got attended to and it's welfare needs met, isn't that the most important thing?
Generally with the big equine jobs that really do require extensive knowledge, the equine officers get sent. Otherwise the other officers know what is required by law.
To be honest, rather than being critical of someone who is doing a job to help animals, why don't you watch the previous episodes and look at the animals rescued from horrific situations or better still have a read of this, if you have the stomach.
http://www.rspca.org.uk/webContent/staticImages/Flipbooks/prosecutions_review_2012/files/index.html
 
MillyMoomie said:
I CAN see what your saying. The black cobby type was obviously in good body condition, which was noted, and OBVIOUSLY did not need any haylage as she said, but that horse would have turned that tethering circle into mud in an hour, it would have needed something else to eat. you also have to look at the initial reason the officer was attending in the first place. People were saying the owner wasn't taking care of him and were doing it themselves ( moving him daily etc as per tethering defra codes of practice). So what does the officer want, the owner to take some responsibility? To get the horse in a more suitable location? As far as 'shelter' goes, the cob couldn't stay at that lovely wall forever, you are meant to move the tether daily for obvious reasons. The officer didn't have a go at the owner or even say horses can only live in a stable etc, she didn't even say the cob needed a rug to him. She simply asked if the owner had any plans in place to move the horse to a more suitable location. Haylage? Wrong sort yes. But not everyone can have the same sort of knowledge as you and me. At the end of the day the horse got attended to and it's welfare needs met, isn't that the most important thing?
Generally with the big equine jobs that really do require extensive knowledge, the equine officers get sent. Otherwise the other officers know what is required by law.
To be honest, rather than being critical of someone who is doing a job to help animals, why don't you watch the previous episodes and look at the animals rescued from horrific situations or better still have a read of this, if you have the stomach.
http://www.rspca.org.uk/webContent/staticImages/Flipbooks/prosecutions_review_2012/files/index.html
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BIB.

This is the problem with the RSPCA, the nursing profession ect. ect.

The only relevant information is the "doing a job".
What the job is shouldn't affect whether people can be criticised for not doing it well enough.
 
Tethered horses poor things. Didnt watch the programme but reading this thread a bit abstracted or so it appears and taken out of context by good old RSPCA bashers. Get of your aaaaa.....e and see if you can do better then. By the way just put some dosh in RSPCA box in supermarket(probably the nice young man helped as people sauntered past to buy their fat food).
 
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