RSPCA EXAGGERATE CLAIMS TO AID PROSECUTION

Cruelty-charge woman says RSPCA exaggerated claims

Tuesday, November 11, 2008, 09:30

A pet owner facing 10 cruelty charges has told a court the RSPCA exaggerated the state of her animals and her home.
Patricia Wyer, is accused of unnecessary cruelty towards four dogs and a rabbit.

However, Wyer, 54, told District Judge Tim Daber at Leicester Magistrates' Court she did not believe the dogs had suffered or were in pain and refuted evidence from RSPCA inspectors about the state of her home.

She described how Twinkle, was taken to a vet in October, last year, when she started to lose the use of a hind leg.
Both legs were paralysed. Mrs Wyer was told that if an injection given to the dog had no effect within 48 hours, the only other solutions would be surgery or to have Twinkle put to sleep.

She said: "She showed improvement one day after the injection. If I had not observed any, I would have taken her back to the vet myself, not because anyone had advised me."
She said when the animals were seized by the RSPCA on November 23, she received no communication from the charity.
Mrs Wyer said an description given to the court by RSPCA inspector Sarah Bate of her home as "smelly and sticky underfoot due to dog faeces" was because she was away from home due to a double family tragedy.
"My sister died suddenly the previous week and my brother was in a motor accident which left him paralysed.
"The state of the house was not as bad as it was made out to be – there were faeces in only one room and, with Dolly being in season, we had to mop up everywhere.
"I did not have time to clean up."
She stressed even at the point when the three dogs were taken away to be destroyed, none was showing signs of suffering.
She said: "When they were taken [by the RSPCA] they all walked out to the van wagging their tails – they thought they were going for a walk."
She said she was treating the rabbit, Gizmo, for poorly eyes and had taken advice from a friend who bred rabbits and kept a pet shop.
Her son, Carl Stein, yesterday told the court he regularly visited the house every two or three weeks and saw nothing wrong with any of the dogs.
He said: "I do not think Twinkle was in pain because she was eating and wagging her tail."
The case continues.

http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/news/Cruelty-charge-woman-says-RSPCA-exaggerated-claims/article-464174-detail/article.html

RSPCA HAVE ASSETS WORTH OVER £110 MILLION WHILST BENEFACTORS FAMILY LIVE IN POVERTY

RSPCA PROSPER WHILST FAMILY LIVE IN CARAVAN

Legal Services UK (LSUK) ran a news item a few weeks back which covered how a family expected to gain a father’s inheritance, except, he left his estate to a charity, the RSPCA.

Here’s another person who has clashed with that same charity.

LSUK received a comment directly from Victoria Devlin, one of the grandchildren involved.

My grandfather died and left all his estate to the RSPCA leaving my parents living in a caravan. He was coerced into leaving his estate to the RSPCA as his first love was for his grandchildren who are now living in virtual poverty. I hope you are happy with this!
LSUK asked her to give us further information and her viewpoint.

Here’s how she replied:
I made a comment regarding the blog about the RSPCA receiving inheritance money. My family has lost approximately £250,000 because my grandfather changed his will that he made with my grandmother where everything was to be left to my parents. My parents are now living in a caravan and caring for my Grandfather in his later years has contributed to this.

My grandparents were a loving couple and we (I and my brother and sister) spent a lot of time with them in our childhood, we were a totally devoted and very close family.
My Grandmother died of cancer and my Grandfather died later after spending a while living with my parents who looked after him. He had changed his will some time earlier leaving his whole estate to the RSPCA I must say that he was not lucid during the last 3/4 years of his lifetime.
I know my Grandparents and I know how much they loved their family, for this to happen is just inconceivable.
My original post was intended to re-iterate the fact that though animals cannot help themselves against the atrocities that humankind can sometimes inflict on them - how would these people (who are self opinionated and self confessed animal lovers) feel if they thought their actions and beliefs had left a couple of married pensioners living in a state of near poverty?

(Probably they would not care because my parents do not have fur coats and wet noses).
I am an animal lover, I do not wear fur and I have two very well cared for and pampered Border Collies!
LSUK asked what the family were hoping to do next, in their fight to gain some if not all of the assets they believe they should own:
Sorry to say the fight is over - neither I or my parents can afford to fight such a massive corporation as the RSPCA.
I just wanted to put my point across that even though we are all a massive animal loving family, and would never wish harm to any animal, I wish I could make my parents happy and comfortable in their retirement.
Legals UK are pleased to be able to show the granddaughter’s viewpoint on this subject. Readers will see two distinct points of view. You almost certainly had to be there to know the full truth which this family and the RSPCA will probably never agree upon.
Being sufficiently mentally capable to make a will is a vital legal requirement, as is the need for a charity to chase money it believes is rightly left to it.
http://www.legalsuk.com/blog/rspca-prosper/

MOTHER FIGHTS RSPCA FOR HER £2.34 M INHERITANCE

A Woman who left her £2.3m farm to the RSPCA had 'psychiatric problems'

An elderly woman was suffering from psychiatric problems when she made a will leaving her £2.34million estate to the RSPCA, a court heard today.

Joyce Gill suffered from agoraphobia with panic disorder when she and her husband, John, made their wills, leaving their 287-acre farm to each other and then to the animal charity when both died, a medical expert told a High Court hearing in Leeds.

The couple's daughter, Dr Christine Gill, 58, (pictured) from Northallerton, North Yorkshire, launched a legal battle in July this year to challenge the will, which she claimed her father coerced her mother into making.

Dr Christine Gill has challenged her parents' will
Today Rob Howard, a consultant psychiatrist, told the resumed hearing he had compiled a report about Mrs Gill's mental health based on witness statements and came to the conclusion she suffered from agoraphobia with panic disorder, which began in her childhood.
Professor Howard told the court he believed Mrs Gill would have been very anxious when faced with meeting a solicitor and would not have been able to take much in.
In his statement, he said: 'Seeing a solicitor, even with Mr Gill being present, would have been outside the set of situations within which Mrs Gill would have been expected to have been able to prevent the emergence of severe anxiety symptoms.
'My opinion would be that this would be likely to have materially affected her ability to concentrate upon and digest what was being said to her during such a meeting.'
Professor Howard agreed with Claire Royston, a consultant psychiatrist giving evidence for the RSPCA, that it was likely Mrs Gill would have conformed with the wishes of her husband when they made their wills in 1993.
The court heard previously that Mr Gill was stubborn and domineering towards his wife, who went everywhere with her husband and was dependent on him to make decisions for her.
Professor Howard's statement continued: 'Her dependence upon Mr Gill would have made it very difficult for her to express a wish to make a will that was different from one that he wished to make.'
But the two medical experts disagreed about Mrs Gill's mental state.
In a joint statement, Professor Howard and Dr Royston said: 'Dr Royston does not believe that Mrs Gill would have met criteria for any formal psychiatric disorder but should most usefully be viewed as having been an eccentric woman.'
The court has heard that Dr Gill - an only child - was given repeated assurances that she would inherit Potto Carr Farm, in North Yorkshire, when her parents died.
The university lecturer told the court she had devoted most of her spare time over a period of more than 30 years to voluntarily helping out at the farm.
When Mr Gill died in 1999, aged 82, she was left to look after her mother and run the farm, the court has heard.
It was only when her mother died in 2006, also aged 82, that Dr Gill saw the will, which left everything to the RSPCA.

Vena Says

The RSPCA recently advertised (in The Guardian,) for an £110,000-a-year chief executive and an £80,000-a-year head of finance. Both packages come with company car, private health insurance and ´ performance-related´ bonus. No wonder they couldn´t give a stuff where the money comes from, just so long as a large wedge finds its way into their bank accounts. Isn´t there something rather disgusting about a charity worker getting a ´performance-related´ bonus? That´s the reason I try to make it a rule never to give a penny to any of these mega-charidees, stuffed with six-figure salaries and vast public relations departments, who dream up ever more expensive and offensive advertising campaigns to try to shame us into handing over our hard-earned.Instead, I support small charities, run in the main by compassionate volunteers who never seek any payment in return. If you want to give to animal welfare, make your donations out to a local sanctuary or dog´s home.

The hearing is due to last until the end of the week.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1084540/Woman-left-2-3m-farm-RSPCA-psychiatric-problems.html

RSPCA THREATEN RESCUE FARMER WITH PROSECUTION

A FARMER WHO RISKED HIS OWN LIFE TO SAVE HIS SHEEP WAS THREATENED WITH PROSECUTION BY THE RSPCA.

FARMER criticised for saving his breeding sheep from flood water in Rickerby Park has defended his actions.
Mr Bell was criticised for his actions by the RSPCA
Jeff Bell, of Hallbankgate, drove a tractor and trailer onto ground flooded by the River Eden to rescue 100 ewes.
He feared they would swim for shore and drown, so ignored advice from fire officers, the RSPCA and police and went to the aid of his livestock.
Mr Bell said: “The Environment Agency said the water was at its maximum. I knew they were not going to get washed away but I thought they might try and swim across the river and drown.
“The RSPCA threatened me with prosecution if I tried to reach them and they were frightened into the river"
“I thought it was safe enough to do it.”
He said the sheep were fully recovered after standing for hours knee-deep in water.
A crowd gathered to watch Sunday’s rescue as some of the sheep swam to shore.
John Baillie, Carlisle group manager with Cumbria Fire and Rescue, said Mr Bell had put himself and others at risk as turbulent waters rushed past just metres away.
He added: “Our first priority is human life and we put that above animals. I put water teams into position to rescue Mr Bell if anything went wrong. We just monitored the situation and in the end no one lost their lives.
“My advice to farmers would be if it is going to rain, get animals to higher ground.
“This could very easily have been a tragedy.”

http://www.cumberland-news.co.uk/farming/1.263194

RSPCA TRANQUILISE FRIGHTENED PONY INSTEAD OF CATCHING HER HUMANELY

RSPCA EMPLOYEES AND 3 POLICE OFFICERS TURN UP TO DART AND SEIZE PONIES, 1 IS ALLEGEDLY OVERWEIGHT AND 1 NEEDS ITS HOOVES TRIMMING !

The RSPCA have taken a second pony from a Thornton field.

Now the owner of the remaining five animals at Fleetwood Road fears he may be prosecuted by the animal charity.

On Wednesday, Keith Hall, of Cleveleys, stood by as the RSPCA removed Shetland stallion Dale, claiming the animal was obese.

Now they have also removed mare April – amid accusations the animal needed its hooves trimmed.

Mr Hall, said : "All they are saying is it's under investigation, that's all I have got."They won't correspond with me, they have not informed me of anything."They say I have to get an independent vet down there.

None of the local vets will say anything against each other so I'm stuck and I can't get a vet."There has been no negotiation.

They could have come to me to discuss it and try to sort things out."Mr Hall claims that his animals have gained weight because members of the public insist on feeding them.

The field is next to a main road and people regularly stop to feed and stroke them.

He added that when the RSPCA attended the field for the second time on Thursday they were intent on tranquillising the mare with a dart rather than attempting the tricky task of trying to catch her.

He said: "They were intent on darting her."There were seven of us, them and five of us and there were three police."I said we could try to catch her but they wouldn't help. So we set off to try and they only decided to help after the police had a word with them."Mr Hall said they succeeded in catching the mare but he still has no idea where his two animals were.

The RSPCA have declined to comment but it is not believed there are any health concerns over the other animals.

http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/blackpoolnews/RSPCA-officials-take-pony-away.4673542.jp

RSPCA PROSECUTE THEIR FORMER KEEPER

In the wake of the recent Pat Seager prosecution case that was severely criticised by MP Frank Field. We ask, is this part of an overall RSPCA strategy to prosecute animal lovers who take in stray and unwanted animals ?

A well respected dog breeder who looked after rescue dogs for the RSPCA has been banned from keeping animals indefinitely.
Kennel owner Joyce Denwood, 43, took in animals for the animal charity and councils, a court heard.

RSPCA inspectors allegedly discovered animals in appalling conditions when they raided her home in March.
Joyce was banned from keeping animals indefinitely and must wait at least a year before applying to have the ban lifted.
Denwood must also do 120 hours’ unpaid work and pay £1,750 RSPCA costs. The charity claimed the case cost them almost £5,800.

http://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/3825796.Coast__dog_carer_is_banned/

RSPCA SEIZE FAT PONY

RSPCA CONDEMNED FOR FAT PONY SWOOP AS THEY IGNORE INJURED ANIMALS.
THE RSPCA have swooped to confiscate a Shetland pony amid accusations the animal had been over-fed by the public.
This happens as in only several weeks they fail to come out to distressed and injured animals as featured previously on this site
Dale, a 13-year-old stallion, is one of around six Shetland ponies in a field at Fleetwood Road, Thornton, which regularly attract members of the public who stroke and feed them.
But angry owner Keith Hall, of Anchorsholme Lane East, Cleveleys, claimed he was doing all he could to stop the public feeding the animals.
He said: "It's the general public feeding them and making them overweight."I have put signs up saying 'Please do not feed the horses' and I find signs thrown over the road."I'm blaming the general public, but Dale isn't hurting. If he was badly overweight he would be ill.
"They're taking my property away and are not telling me where they are taking him – is that right? He's a horse, not a child."
"Dale is a lovely animal. We have not shown him for a couple of years but previously he has won every show we have entered him for."An RSPCA inspector arrived at the field yesterday morning accompanied by police and a vet was on hand to examine the animals.
Eventually Dale was led away into a horse box belonging to the RSPCA at about 2pm.
The RSPCA declined to comment. ( What, No Film Crew !)
http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/blackpoolnews/Welfare-swoop-on-overfed-animals.4666763.jp