Police and RSPCA raid vet centre

I found the most worrying part was that some people had their dogs/cats there as kennels while they are on holiday, or for vet treatment and the RSPCA tell them....

"Owners whose pets were at 4 Paws should contact the RSPCA appeal line on 0300 123 8018 and leave their details in relation to 'Operation Cadmium'. A member of our team will contact you in the coming days."

After the arab horses that were PTS when "rescued" by the RSPCA, despite people saying they would take care of them, and despite an independent vet saying they were generally healthy (apart from needing trimming, feeding, worming and rain scald treating), if I had a dog there I would be incandescent that I had to merely leave my details in a message!

One of the comments seems to imply that drugs were being imported inside the dogs. No idea if that is pure speculation or if it has more substance. TBH that is less worrying than Rabies, especially as a local witness says dogs frequently escape from the establishment.
 
Red-1 said:
if I had a dog there I would be incandescent that I had to merely leave my details in a message!
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having seen the photos-there's no way that place didnt stink to high heaven within 100 metres of it, anyone leaving a dog there for medical treatment needs to take a good hard look at themselves to see if they have the judgment to be keeping a dog.
 
Crikey, that's a massive recovery operation isn't it.

Going slightly off track here but I think it's only a matter of time before we face the real possibility of rabies again in this country. There's an unfortunate niche in the rescue market at the moment of rather cute 'Disney' dogs coming from abroad. You know the ones; all floppy ears and fur. The reputable rescues will ensure all paperwork is up to date but how many dogs are making it past the border in the boot of a car or the back of a van?

Rescuing from abroad is also a very cheap way of getting your hands on a GSP, GWP, English Setter, Beagle and a massive amount of floppy eared hounds. The gap in the market is there and plenty of people are around to fill it - this establishment included by the looks of it.
 
Oh dear, that is horrendous, poor animals.

Can someone explain to me why we need to import strays, do we not have enough of our own that need homes? Dogs in pound situations are being put to sleep every week here.

It concerns me that we are bringing in dogs from Romania, Cyprus, Iraq, etc. to be rehomed in the UK. I meet 2, one from Cyprus and one from Romania. I asked the woman with the Romanian dog that very question - her answer was she saw her on a website and she looked cute; didn't bother to visit Dogs Trust or the other rescues which are virtually on our doorstep. Is it fashionable to say your dog is a street dog from Romania?

Distemper (previously very rare in the UK) is now increasing. Babesiosis has been introduced.

If someone is concerned about the street dogs in wherever would it not be more sensible to donate the money to a charity in that country and get the problem resolved at source?

Sorry, while I have been labouring over this post I see that someone has beaten me to it.
 
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skinnydipper said:
If someone is concerned about the street dogs in wherever would it not be more sensible to donate the money to a charity in that country and get the problem resolved at source?
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you would think so SD but sadly, they seem to be very much 'save any life at any cost' type.

rabies is a nasty disease but as dog owners, probably the least of our worries in terms of infectious disease being introduced to the UK. and as Deb says, a cheap way of getting a pure bred dog (albeit with no health testing etc etc) or the cute kind of mutt we no longer produce in the UK, or at least without a hefty price tag. if UK rescue centres are turning you down for daring to have a job and web pages are tugging at your heart strings with cute pups on the cheap..
 
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I'd hazard a guess that the photos of the animals (apparently taken before the raid) were passed onto the Police and or RSPCA and on that basis, a warrant to search the premises was issued. I doubt the owner would have allowed any RSPCA in if they had visited the place before.

It appears to be yet another person who has, (perhaps) started out with all good intentions, then found themselves completely out of their depth (Jodie Fairbrother? ) by taking on so many. Failing to stop when things started to wrong or ask for help but continued to ignore the massive responsibility they had created, by just putting their head in the sand!

If all the dogs/cats taken away are in Dog's trust care, matching up the animal with their rightful owners, who had boarded them at this hell hole shouldn't be too difficult. Though it may take a few days as they may be dotted in kennels all around the country.

I doubt there was a rabies scare at the centre, otherwise it would have been locked down and Ministry and Animal health would be at the forefront of the raid.
 
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chillipup said:
I'd hazard a guess that the photos of the animals (apparently taken before the raid) were passed onto the Police and or RSPCA and on that basis, a warrant to search the premises was issued. I doubt the owner would have allowed any RSPCA in if they had visited the place before.

It appears to be yet another person who has, (perhaps) started out with all good intentions, then found themselves completely out of their depth (Jodie Fairbrother? ) by taking on so many. Failing to stop when things started to wrong or ask for help but continued to ignore the massive responsibility they had created, by just putting their head in the sand!

If all the dogs/cats taken away are in Dog's trust care, matching up the animal with their rightful owners, who had boarded them at this hell hole shouldn't be too difficult. Though it may take a few days as they may be dotted in kennels all around the country.
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Unusual for armed officers to attend purely on the basis of animal welfare concerns alone, must be some strong intel regarding potential individuals on site (I would have thought!)
 
skinnydipper said:
Is it fashionable to say your dog is a street dog from Romania?
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Yes, that's the niche in the market unfortunately. Fashion trends with animals come and go, just like clothes. It's just the same with horses as it is with dogs and at the moment, the 'rescue from abroad' is the current trend. It's no different to the French Bulldog being the breed of choice for the masses, closely followed by the pug (of all things). There are a couple of rescues for everything crossed with a Pug.

From a rescue's point of view, it costs them nothing to import from abroad. The costs are covered by the breed rescue in the other country (that's if it's a breed rescue). They also don't have the additional hassle of putting up with previous owners often long lists of re-homing stipulations, crocodile tears, abuse and every excuse under the sun to listen to as they walk away from their 'beloved' pet. These dogs just arrive in a van!! You can see why they do it.

What does annoy me are the rescues who re-home from abroad direct to the UK, with no UK support. If the re-homing arrangement doesn't work out, the dog lands up in a general rescue because the original overseas rescue hasn't got a contingency plan in place. The plus side to foreign dogs is you're usually 100% guaranteed to acquire a perfectly socialised dog as they're often kept in big social packs.

Sorry OP, I've gone off on one totally now and hijacked the post. I'm not sure why I'm in a ranting mood today :o
 
skinnydipper .... If someone is concerned about the street dogs in wherever would it not be more sensible to donate the money to a charity in that country and get the problem resolved at source? [/QUOTE said:
It would, I quite agree.
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seems that this has been going on for a long time under different guises and rescue centres (since 2014 apparently). hundreds of dogs per month, thousands overall have been brought in and trafficked (because these dogs are NOT being rescued). lots of other 'rescue' centres have been paying her for transporting dogs here. 2 vans containing up to 100 dogs have been found (after being holed up in JF's mum's pub during the raid). she's not a vet or a VN.
 
deb_l222 said:
The plus side to foreign dogs is you're usually 100% guaranteed to acquire a perfectly socialised dog as they're often kept in big social packs.
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Depending on the country of origin or the situation, these will often be dogs that have never lived in a house, been in a vehicle, walked on a lead or dealt with any sort of noisy, busy, normal social/environmental situations. They can be pretty much feral and bred from generations of feral dogs, their instincts are to survive and to run from danger. I don't call that perfectly socialised or indeed good family pet material and it must be insanely stressful for the dogs to come here over road and sea in the first place, to be 'loved'.
But as long as rescuers can get a warm, fuzzy glow...or a few quid in their back pocket.
 
deb_l222 said:
The plus side to foreign dogs is you're usually 100% guaranteed to acquire a perfectly socialised dog as they're often kept in big social packs.
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true, they're often socialised to other dogs-just not to the 3 bed semi, the noisy kids, people, leads or the cars used to bring them home. all of the missing dogs we've had locally in the last few years have been foreign rescues that leg it upon the car boot being opened or out the front door.

thats without the blind Romanian dogs being brought over-thats a whole other niche or people feeling good about themselves (sorry if this feels like I am having a go at you, I am really not -the whole thing leaves me feeling so angry, both for the foreign dogs and the risk that it puts our own dog population at).
 
CorvusCorax said:
Depending on the country of origin or the situation, these will often be dogs that have never lived in a house, been in a vehicle, walked on a lead or dealt with any sort of noisy, busy, normal social/environmental situations. They can be pretty much feral and bred from generations of feral dogs, their instincts are to survive and to run from danger. I don't call that perfectly socialised or indeed good family pet material and it must be insanely stressful for the dogs to come here over road and sea in the first place, to be 'loved'.
But as long as rescuers can get a warm, fuzzy glow...or a few quid in their back pocket.
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also i note many of these dog leg it within a few days in the new home.
 
MotherOfChickens said:
seems that this has been going on for a long time under different guises and rescue centres (since 2014 apparently). hundreds of dogs per month, thousands overall have been brought in and trafficked (because these dogs are NOT being rescued). lots of other 'rescue' centres have been paying her for transporting dogs here. 2 vans containing up to 100 dogs have been found (after being holed up in JF's mum's pub during the raid). she's not a vet or a VN.
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sounds that it was just a money making scheme
 
I too have noticed many posts under 'Lost Dog' - Adopted from Romania, had him a week, let him off in the woods for a play, never saw him again.....!!
These dogs are mostly feral, having been trapped/caught/picked upon the streets of Romania where they have been living wild, avoiding humans, living on their wits....
Why would they suddenly become 'mans best friend'when man in the guise of a Romanian Dog Catcher, has long been his worst enemy?
 
Is there any chance that Brexit might actually result in the stopping of free for all unmonitored importation of dogs?
 
stormox said:
I too have noticed many posts under 'Lost Dog' - Adopted from Romania, had him a week, let him off in the woods for a play, never saw him again.....!!
These dogs are mostly feral, having been trapped/caught/picked upon the streets of Romania where they have been living wild, avoiding humans, living on their wits....
Why would they suddenly become 'mans best friend'when man in the guise of a Romanian Dog Catcher, has long been his worst enemy?
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Yep, see this all the time. Poor dogs !
 
BBP said:
Unusual for armed officers to attend purely on the basis of animal welfare concerns alone, must be some strong intel regarding potential individuals on site (I would have thought!)
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Might be something as simple as the resident has a gun licence (farming/shooting type) so there’s a firearms’ marker on the house.

I agree with pp that we should stop importing foreign dogs when there are plenty in this country, particularly when the non=house trained street dog is not really a suitable fluffy puppy. I’m seeing them in local rescues currently.
 
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cinnamontoast said:
Might be something as simple as the resident has a gun licence (farming/shooting type) so there’s a firearms’ marker on the house.

I agree with pp that we should stop importing foreign dogs when there are plenty in this country, particularly when the non=house trained street dog is not really a suitable fluffy puppy. I’m seeing them in local rescues currently.
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Unfortunately whilst there are plenty of uk dogs in rescues those rescues won’t adopt out dogs to the vast majority of the population! God help you if you work or have small children, or have a small garden, or are not willing to put up with 400 home visits and visit the center 50+ times, or question why rehoming a elderly mongrel with a dodgey past and an iffy temperament costs more than buying a puppy!

I tried rehoming a dog through several rescues but despite being very knowledgable and providing a good home was always turned down either because I worked or because the dog would be expected to interact with my nieces and nephews on a regular basis. Or because I questioned the £650 adoption fee at one center!

In the end I gave up, bought a 1yr old beagle privately and he is extremely happy and living the life of Riley.
 
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conniegirl said:
Unfortunately whilst there are plenty of uk dogs in rescues those rescues won’t adopt out dogs to the vast majority of the population! God help you if you work .
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Unfortunately some rescues have a very short sighted approach to rehoming. My sister had provided an excellent home for her rescue dog for 13 years. She was never put in kennels but looked after by family members who were well known to her. She was not left for extended periods as my sister works 9-5 and her husband works shifts plus she employed the services of an excellent dog walker, in addition to walks before and after work. Despite this, when her dog died, she was deemed an unsuitable adopter by the RSPCA and the Dogs Trust as both she and her husband work. She adopted a dog from a breed rescue.

I think perhaps some rescues need to review their rehoming policies and look at the quality of the homes being offered.
 
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