Was it hillside that had a bit of a dodgy reputation?

Tiddlypom

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NLP wasn't the only one who had a post pulled and knuckles rapped :redface3:
Some things need to be said, so well done all of those who are nursing smarting knuckles.

As regular HHOers may know, I have fostered ponies for a sometimes maligned major animal charity. Indeed, THE major animal rescue charity. My foster fillies have gone on to strictly vetted loving homes.

I can't understand how any rescue organisation worthy of respect can take in animals and not then ever put suitable ones up for adoption? It does indeed smack of hoarding.
 

GirlFriday

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They had to stop the dealer discussions altogether (ish) when the posters got out of hand with stuff that could have got HHd sued... If people exercise some restraint then perhaps we won't end up with charity* discussions banned too...

ETA: *charity or whatever
 

JFTDWS

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If people exercise some restraint then


Indeed. I mean, it's outrageously invasive to pull out the relevant figures from a publicly available document that was submitted by the charity themselves, and which must (legally) be factually accurate, and then present them in post... Show some restraint, people. :rolleyes3:
 

honetpot

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Ah, but they are not a charity. They are a company with shareholders.
Ok they are not M&S , but the closing shareholders funds for 2016, were just over £2,200,000 , page 18
I think most of us if we ran a company with a turnover of 7m would be happy.
 

JFTDWS

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Ah, but they are not a charity. They are a company with shareholders.

I know that - I've just been reading all their sodding accounts. I'm just a blinkin' idiot and wrote charity instead of company because I have no brain cells left untinseled...
 

DabDab

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Be careful, the information becomes defamatory when extrapolated directly from the accounts and written on a forum. I have the yellow card to show for it :D

Oh, but I have not passed comment.
I have not even invited discussion, by, for example, posing the question: "what other organisation in charge of a large number of equines do you know that has £1million in the bank?"

I just posted a link for general reference purposes

ETA: JFTD, that sounds truly traumatic
 

GirlFriday

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Is £1m really a lot to have in the bank given the number of animals they are keeping? How many month's outgoings would that cover? I'm thinking not a very great number actually...

Regarding rehoming how depressing is this: http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/12-ponies-last-christmas-dominic-finds-home-640727

Despite individual appeals with huge amounts of publicity in the equine press only 6 out of 12 of last year's 'Christmas ponies' found homes. Even with the best possible chance of rehoming many equines wouldn't be finding anywhere... Which I think is where hoarders can play their part.
 

DabDab

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That's the amount left at year end after paying all bills for the horses. It's the equivalent of a lot of hay and a fair bit of land in my mind

Where horses are concerned it is fairly unusual for the money to be coming in faster than the horses use it up. It's a position that the vast majority of other equine organisations would be very enviable of.
 

Nugget La Poneh

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My comments were only based on what I saw on a daily basis, aside from what could be classed as heresay about the vets and medical needs, but knowing the people that mentioned it I would be very surprised it wasn't the case. Apart from anything else, it takes a lot to leave a job without a reason so can't see that everything was rosy in those cases.
Any questions regarding homing, their numbers, accounts or less than fluffy bunny posts on their FB page get removed.
Daft thing is that in my post I even gave them credit for some of the work they have done.

What Hillside could've done, if it was them that complained, was counter what had been posted. Make their marketing/PR dept work a bit harder for a more positive way than having to defend their activists when they stray.
I know I will get another knuckle rap/yellow card. But deleting the bad stuff will only confirm what many people feel (and say until they get deleted or told to pipe down), and does nothing to help their cause.
 

MotherOfChickens

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I've never donated but am quite shocked they aren't a charity and aren't destitute. A lot of animal charities do have a lot of money in the bank (used to be that The Donkey Sanctuary was the richest I think) and they do need a certain amount to remain able to function.

next time a hay donation comes up on my FB feed, I may ask them about this :D
 

JFTDWS

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Hear hear, Tiddlypom. Keep this thread going and allow people to read between the lines - in quoted posts and references to the posts deleted by their secret police...

I'm sticking with the Blue Cross and WHW, personally.
 

Bernster

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Hmm currently have some unread messages in this account. Will studiously avoid fornow as I get really irate. Never was one for getting told off.

Publicly available accounts, available to anyone who might wish to search.
 

meleeka

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I'm sticking with the RSPCA.

You are joking right?!! Two wrongs most definitely don’t make a right, I’m sure when you look into accounts the RSPCA aren’t doing too badly either.

Perhaps you should start a thread about how dodgy the RSPCA’s reputation. I’m sure you’d get far more criticism of them.
 

Tiddlypom

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I was slightly tongue in cheek, knowing the rep the RSPCA has on HHO, I should have put an ;) at the end of my post.

I don't donate to them financially. However, my dealings with them when fostering ponies (unpaid) from the RSPCA Gonsal Farm equine centre in Shropshire have been great. I only visted it initially as it was the nearest equine rescue facility. I am very happy to help them with the fostering, and they do their utmost to rehome their charges. They need to turn them around and send them out, otherwise there is no room for new ones to come in to be rehabilitated. They'd soon be overflowing if they didn't get animals out for adoption...

Forgot to say that I'm also a member of the WHW.
 

meleeka

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I was slightly tongue in cheek, knowing the rep the RSPCA has on HHO, I should have put an ;) at the end of my post.

I don't donate to them financially. However, my dealings with them when fostering ponies (unpaid) from the RSPCA Gonsal Farm equine centre in Shropshire have been great. I only visted it initially as it was the nearest equine rescue facility. I am very happy to help them with the fostering, and they do their utmost to rehome their charges. They need to turn them around and send them out, otherwise there is no room for new ones to come in to be rehabilitated. They'd soon be overflowing if they didn't get animals out for adoption...

Forgot to say that I'm also a member of the WHW.

I’ve no idea how to do those faces on my phone so I can’t really ‘do’ tongue in cheek, but yes it would have helped. :) (I can only do a smiley or a frown).

I agree that when they actually do something they are very good at it, on the Equine side at least, as that’s all I have experience of.
 

The Fuzzy Furry

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I've never donated but am quite shocked they aren't a charity and aren't destitute. A lot of animal charities do have a lot of money in the bank (used to be that The Donkey Sanctuary was the richest I think) and they do need a certain amount to remain able to function.

next time a hay donation comes up on my FB feed, I may ask them about this :D

You are totally right on the functionality of requiring a financial cushion.

I sent a friend the link, she who has been 'donating' at least 5 bales of hay a month. She's a totally non horsey, very reputable person, an accountant, who has gone through this link with an open mind. Got a message back last night asking my opinion as to where her monthly donations would actually be better off going. Told her I donate to 2 major equine charities - and also the LOCAL rspca branch. The latter is because I know how their finances work.
Big shame really, if I hadn't had my knuckles rapped..... but I now have my sticky tape firmly attached :)
 

MotherOfChickens

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I don't understand why anyone has had their knuckles rapped tbh. I thought they were a charity, their hay funding drives gives a very different perspective on what they are and do-if I had wanted to donate I'd have done more checking but how many people would just take it at face value? I did vaguely wonder how they functioned if they have as many animals as they claim but made it a policy some years ago to not donate to rescue charities so have never looked more closely at them.
 
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