Please advise...Shoud I contact the RSPCA ?

Person_one

I wonder how many dogs the RSPCA would have to take in if it was suddenly deemed that leaving them while you go to work was 'cruel', surely it would be in the thousands?

virgin_moneysaver

I'm just glad I'm not one of his neighbours

vicx

I don't understand what the problem is here. The OP came here asking for advice, how many others would have just picked up the phone and reported the owner to the RSPCA if they too were concerned about a dog being left alone for more than 8 hours per day. The OP is happy with the advice and not going to report his/her neighbour.

I've owned dogs for the past 18 year and neither of them liked being left alone but they had each other as company so were left for up to 4 hours. If I was out longer I had neighbours pop in to let them out and feed them.

Not all dogs like to be left alone. My neighbour owned a dog (staff) and kept in a very small toilet, the poor dog did not even have enough room to turn around. At the time they were hardly living there so the dog was always left alone, constantly barking, crying and howling yet the neighbour on the other side could not hear the dog (which could be the same with the OPs neighbours). I get on well with my neighbour so mentioned this to them and for the past few year the dog has lived with their mother around the corner but I'm not sure the dog is any better off. The dog is kept in a kind of brick shed with no human company apart from when they go around to feed it once a day. I have never seen the dog since but they seem to think its funny that they are feeding it big dinners so apparently it is now 'huge' and gets no excercise. Everytime they mention this I do say the dog needs to be burning off calories but they just tell me the dog has a garden - not the same! The dog is their son's but he has not been seen for 4 year so his parents had to take the dog on and now it's ended up in their mothers shed/kennel. She is not capable of looking after herself so the dog does not go in her house. They aren't dog lovers but had to take the dog on because of their son.

rising_from_the_ashes

LisaB85 wrote: »

An owner will soon know about it if their dog isn't happy being left alone......

Ohhhhhh yeeessssshhhhh!;)

Ben left all day = throw & cushions off the sofa & pillows in a heap on my bed (as he'd made himself comfortable on both) and cats' bowls licked clean on the floor (ohhhhh, I do miss those days)

Ben left until lunchtime + then left in the afternoon = all the above (by lunchtime) plus shredded (and sometimes eaten) curtains, duvet covers, towels.

Person_one wrote: »

I wonder how many dogs the RSPCA would have to take in if it was suddenly deemed that leaving them while you go to work was 'cruel', surely it would be in the thousands?

Which makes most of the rescue's policies even more hard to understand:(

vicx wrote: »

Not all dogs like to be left alone. My neighbour owned a dog (staff) and kept in a very small toilet, the poor dog did not even have enough room to turn around.

......

The dog is kept in a kind of brick shed with no human company apart from when they go around to feed it once a day.

Oh no Vicx, that's horrible, poor, poor wee mite. I know they've taken it on but it may actually be better for the poor soul to go to a rescue and hopefully find a nice forever home.:(

LisaB85

Person_one wrote: »

I wonder how many dogs the RSPCA would have to take in if it was suddenly deemed that leaving them while you go to work was 'cruel', surely it would be in the thousands?

A lot of rescues will rehome dogs to homes where there will be left, they will match a dog suitable for it.

Greyhounds do well at home all day.....they just sleep :rotfl:

rising_from_the_ashes

LisaB85 wrote: »

A lot of rescues will rehome dogs to homes where there will be left, they will match a dog suitable for it.

Greyhounds do well at home all day.....they just sleep :rotfl:

Unfortunately all the ones round here are "no" - one of the cat rescue is now refusing to rehome cats to people who work full time .....:(

I have thought about greyhounds (but the local greyhound recue won't rehome to full time workers) .... will look into it more when the time is right (too soon for me as yet) but need a cat friendly one and one that won't disappear in open spaces so not sure if that's possible!

Hillbilly1

Our neighbours had no idea how often a dog walker or one of us is around with our dog, and they are home all day with their child!

They were shocked when we told them how often someone is with our dog - it probably doesnt help that he doesn't like to go out much, doesn't bark and is too small to see easily when in the garden!

vicx

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

Oh no Vicx, that's horrible, poor, poor wee mite. I know they've taken it on but it may actually be better for the poor soul to go to a rescue and hopefully find a nice forever home.:(

I have mentioned this a few times but they aren't willing to let the dog go because 'its their son's dog and if he ever comes out of hospital he would want the dog'. The dog did have a better life when their son was home then it got shut in a small toilet and now a brick shed.

If their son does come out of hospital, he'd want the dog back in the house but they are so house proud now so there would be problems. I think the dog is around 10 or 11 years old now, not sure what the life span of a Staff is? but overfeeding and no excercise will bound to be causing heart problems and reduce the poor dogs life. I'm not too keen on staff's as I prefer small dogs but it was a lovely friendly dog when it lived nextdoor to me.

I do think it's cruel how they are keeping it but if it's getting food and water, theres nothing the RSPCA would do.

MessyMare

oops- double post

MessyMare

I used to have someone come round to take Roger for a walk (someone from the rescue that we rehomed him from)...she couldn't get him off the sofa. I mean, he is a bit of a lump but once he's bedded in, he won't move! He only seems to get distressed if we leave him when we're 'supposed' to be there- at the weekend or in the evening. He's a chilled out character though

Having said that, I have reported someone to the RSPCA for something similar- they left a young husky locked in a very small yard from about 8am until late at night every day. The poor mite would just howl and howl and howl; stressed himself out and gave himself a dicky tummy and ended up covered in it because he couldn't get away from his mess Poor little thing. My then OH ended up climbing over the wall (we knew them well, we looked after some kittens they had when they went away) and cleaned him and the yard up. RSPCA did nothing, they blagger through it (something along the lines of "the door was open, but the dog shut himself in the yard" - lies)