Did your rescue group appear at today’s Million Paws Walk?
A lot of groups did, for many reasons; a large audience of pet lovers, the chance to be seen as legitimate alongside a well-known brand like the RSPCA, and many, because the RSPCA release pets to them so they feel like they have a ‘good working relationship’ so why would you not take the opportunity?
Meanwhile the RSPCA is gifted the opportunity to stand up in the public space and say – See, we’re the good guys. No one WANTS to kill pets. And we have a great relationship with the community, so any killing MUST be the public’s fault. Look! We’re all on the same team, and having rescue groups here proves it.
Rescuers love the exposure and feeling like they’re making friends in high places. The RSPCA get to keep on Walking.
But how’s it working out for the pets?
The figures for last year (2011/12), RSPCA national was as follows;
Pets adopted directly from the RSPCA – 38,464
Pets killed by the RSPCA – 38,862
Meaning slightly more pets were killed than rehomed by the RSPCA nationally. Their adopt vs kill ratio is basically 1 for 1.
And during that same period, how many pets did the RSPCA release a pet to be rehomed via a rescue group – nationally, from every branch and shelter, including those who claim to have an excellent working relationship with rescue?
3,461*
(*‘Transferred: animals transferred to non-RSPCA shelter or pound’)
More than 10 times as many pets were killed, as were passed on to rescue groups last financial year. And yet many rescue groups were happy to walk today, flying the flag of an RSPCA supporter.
This is how our broken sheltering system, the one that kills 39,000 pets and puts just 3,400 into rescue, is maintained.
Having rescues onside – those groups who are often the most knowledgeable and potentially dangerous to the status quo when advocating on behalf of pets – allows the RSPCA to maintains the status quo of ‘save a few, kill the rest’.
The RSPCA as an organisation can continue to collect pound tenders, and close local facilities, and block access to pets by rescuers as they so desire. They can even go into the public arena, and join government advisory panels, assert that rescuers are ‘hoarders’ and work to develop laws which make it harder and harder for groups to operate… and guess what? While they’re doing all they can to keep all the power in their own hands, you’re attending their events and helping them keep their brand sparkling and bright.
Don’t worry though; they’ll throw you a few pets here and there to keep you sweet.
If you walked in the Walk today, or joined as a rescue group partner, you just rubber stamped this as the animal sheltering system our pets should be being provided with. You gave away your power to stand up for the fair treatment of our pets, and instead granted the RSPCA permission for another twelve months of community sponsored killing.
There will always be a place for rescue groups willing to turn a blind eye and play ball, at the Million Paws Walk.
By the numbers; which RSPCA releases the most pets to rescue?
ACT 245/3,014 unclaimed pets (8%)
SA – 428/6,057 unclaimed pets (7%)
NSW 1,340/27,259 unclaimed pets (5%)
QLD – 976/25,916 unclaimed pets (4%)
VIC – 372/18,140 unclaimed pets (2%)
TAS – 100/3,944 unclaimed pets (3%)
WA – 0 (0%)
NT – 0 (0%)
In terms of the numbers, are those actually unclaimed pets or unclaimed animals? That is, do wildlife and livestock count in those figures?
Dogs and cats only T.
I suggest that the majority of people went because it was a good day out and that they were supporting the RSPCA not only to kill pets but to medically treat them and rehome some of them. They do that as well you know? 34000 of them according to your stats. Until you have a solution to the over population of unwanted pets I suggest you drop the campaign to rubbish the RSPCA at every opportunity. If you have the answer on where to put the 34000 of pets put down by the RSPCA this year, and next year and the year after then please share your secret. Then you can answer how you will pay for them, medicate them and provide training, behavioural modification exercise and enrichment? We are all dying to know – in fact lots of pets are dying to know at the RSPCA in fact. It is possibly quite a bit easier to rehome EVERY pet if you have a smaller number to rehome . Until you have 68000 pets going through your own shelter/group then you are probably not fit to compare your rehoming results with the RSPCA. If the vast majority of no kill shelters got off their high horse , employed some qualified people, (if they stopped being so fanatical most Animal professionals would volunteer), and stopped rehoming dogs with issues or confining unhomeables to a life of kenneling, then they might get a bit more respect from the public, professionals and government. I find it highly insulting that you branded the general public and the other shelters who attended this event as rubber stamping the RSPCAs kill rate. I didn’t see or hear any statement from the RSPCA saying “see we’re the good guys no one wants to kill pets and we have a relationship to the community” could you supply references please?
Overpopulation – more pets than there are homes – is a myth. There is no calculation ever done on the pet population dynamics in Australia which support it as a theory.
That said – it doesn’t actually matter. We don’t need to ‘fix’ overpopulation to save these pets. Which is really good news.
Rescue groups are begging to be allowed to work in conjunction with the RSPCA. Largely their pleas are ignored. Just 3,400 pets leave the RSPCA this way.
Secondly, rather than being ‘forced’ to take in 60,000+ pets, the RSPCA CHOOSE to do so. They actively tender for pound contracts, then block the community from rescuing these animals. Each animal the RSPCA takes in via a council contract nets them between $150 and $300 dollars.
If the RSPCA are ‘overpopulated’, then the solution is easy. Stop taking in so many pets. Give council contracts back to councils. Allow other groups to establish in these locations. Stop monopolising pets and moving animals to ‘mega pound’ facilities.
Some of the most successful pounds in Australia are pounds run by local government working in partnership with local rescue groups. Practically all pets can be saved by the community, if they’re not being moved to enormous centralised locations who process multiple pound contracts and who then complain about being ‘overpopulated’.
Before the RSPCA kill, they must throw open their doors. Create a centralised website of lost pets and pets who are on ‘kill lists’. Allow the community to step in and get involved. Stop killing and hiding behind excuses.
We no longer have to accept that large-scale, wholesale killing is an appropriate ‘solution’ to lost and homeless companion animals.
You were certainly right about one thing – no one who walked in the Million Paws Walk wanted their individual donation to be spent on killing animals. Yet the reality is, with a one for one kill v rehome rate, half of these donations likely are.
Killing when rescue groups are willing to save pets is not acceptable when a local pound does it. It is not acceptable when the RSPCA does it. Killing pets instead of saving their lives is no longer acceptable, period.
You say you want Rescues and RSPCA to work together more yet we they do align together you are critical, I dont get it.
I volunteer at RSPCA but also help rescues and the continually negatively just turns people away from animal welfare. I believe every group has areas where they could improve but your focus always seems to be on the tall poppy.
I know that many of RSPCA Vic’s shelters have rehoming/reclaims for dogs above 90% and I can tell you the number one issue is the amount of cats and kittens that continue to arrive at all shelters. There aren’t rescue groups that can take in many more cats so it would be great to hear your solution?
Continued negativity turns people off? Really – because by the measure of ‘not dead pets’, what we are doing isn’t working.
It’s easy to say ‘oh, groups should work together – stop being so negative’, but hangon. Why are so few pets making it out of this system alive? Why are so many of them failing to be protected by the only system we have to protect them?
It’s WONDERFUL if what you’re saying about some of the RSPCA Vic branches is true. However, if it is true, surely that’s even more of a reason to be asking why the other branches aren’t offering the same outcomes?
This is how we build an animal management system which saves lives. Not by accepting killing. Not by failing to stand up for pets so we can instead only talk about ‘positive’ things.
But by constantly asking – in 2013, is this really the best we can do?
And if you’re interested in programs which save the lives of cats, and not just waxing lyrical on how they *have* to die, Google ‘Alley Cat Allies’ or ‘Maddie’s Fund’ and ‘humane cat management’.
Or click
http://www.petrescue.com.au/library/articles/humane-cat-management
I am fortunate that I get to work with other volunteers and staff who are constantly not just talking about how to improve animal welfare but are actually hands on doing things that are making a difference.
You imply that these welfare workers accept the status quo or just kill animals when there are other options and this is so far from the truth. There are many factors that impact on euthanasia rates and certainly different regions face different challenges.
I have read many of the papers from the US and other regions on cat welfare program’s and it seems that no one has a magical solution. Yes we are seeing improvement but not enough and certainly not anywhere near the improvements seen for dogs.
You’re proposing that killing one pet for every pet that is adopted is an acceptable status quo.
There is no other industry in the world who not only accepts, but actively defends, a failure rate of 50%.
If it were a hospital killing a patient for every patient they saved, we’d be outraged. If it were a fire service who let every second house burn to the ground, we’d demand an investigation. If it were a small business they would go bust.
There are more than 100 No Kill communities in the US. Whole communities – made up of thousands of pounds, shelters, rescue groups, foster carers and volunteers – saving 90%+ of the communities pets.
http://outthefrontdoor.com/
Our pets deserve a world-leading animal management system. Not a system which shrugs and gets busy killing.
In SA we held a very successful event Voices of the Animals Awareness Day of which a number of No Kill Shelters attended. We do not need to ride the coat tails of the RSPCA to get our Voice Heard. With what the RSPCA are doing in SA it won’t be long before they implode. They need to become accountable now and change their practices before the public loose faith in them all together.
In SA, as far as I’m aware RSPCA does not work with any private rescue organisations.