JRT RESCUE Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 I would pay the money to get them out then take legal action and take it to the media because the longer they have them the more chance of them being put to sleep because they failed a behavior test. I had a jack last Friday that was surrender some 3 weeks previous and then they rang the owner to let her know that he had failed and was on the list last Friday to be put to sleep. She rang me and they in turn allowed her to allow me to take the dog. Apparently he failed on food aggression and not getting along with little dogs. One of my carers picked him up as I was not allowed on Friday and they said they would not hold him over the weekend, had to be picked up Friday or pts. Carer took him home feed him put her hands in the bowl and around his muzzle, then later that day he was playing with her 3 other jacks. And since then we have done further tests with food and other dogs and no problem. So I would get them out asap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowgirl Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 I'm in SA, let me know if I can help in any way. RSPCA SA are VERY hard to work with. I'm happy to help Jane and Iggy Rescue in any way I can. The dogs couldn't come here though as I already have 7 here but if I can help in any other way please let me know. Jo xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisys Mum Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 i am in SA too ....if I can help in any way please let me know . I can't have them here either as it's a 2 dog limit The poor wee things I wish I could do more. The RSPCA have a lot to answer to ... and people wonder why they are disliked so much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alyosha Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 Is it in SA or NSW? It will come under different laws but there should be a legal requirement for the shelter to attempt the location and/or notification of legal owners. If they haven't complied with this, and have admitted as much (verbally or otherwise) then legal action should be commenced. Even if it just starts with a letter from a solicitor. If they made these admissions verbally, then notes should be kept - the name of the staff member who said that, to whom, how and when. In NSW the requirements start here: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/caa1998174/s63.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juice Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 I would be worried they might just pts knowing you are onto them. I would get legal advice, they are not theirs to legally adopt out atm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indigirl Posted December 25, 2012 Author Share Posted December 25, 2012 We can't afford to pay the huge fee they will set. The legal aspect bothers me in that it may be months before its resolved and what does that e,an for the dogs? They need out ASAP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdierikx Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 Do you know anyone at all with decent fencing, no kids, and no other dogs... and who can apply to adopt them? Once they are out of there, the new "owner" can immediately sign them over to you... T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowgirl Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 I have the mobile numbers for the RSPCA SA Chief Inspector and the Deputy Chief Inspector if you'd like to contact them directly. Just ring, email or PM me. xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheridan Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 My view after reading the OP again is that the RSPCA are holding the dogs illegally, particularly as they now know who the legal owner is and will not hand them over. However, the only person who can give a legal opinion is a lawyer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted December 26, 2012 Share Posted December 26, 2012 Personaly I would have had a friend adopt these dogs by now and delt with the issue of not scanning after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greytmate Posted December 26, 2012 Share Posted December 26, 2012 My view after reading the OP again is that the RSPCA are holding the dogs illegally, particularly as they now know who the legal owner is and will not hand them over. However, the only person who can give a legal opinion is a lawyer. Yes. I think a lawyer should be consulted asap. It only takes one phone consultation for them to be able to send an immediate letter by email to the RSPCA. If this is done then the RSPCA will realise there is a serious dispute and not sell or euth the dogs. At the moment there is a danger this will happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ringo Posted December 26, 2012 Share Posted December 26, 2012 Yes first stop for determining the owner of a dog in NSW is the microchip details as recorded on the microchip register. It is contained in the Companion Animals Act. There is the option of a stat dec being completed to vary this however false information on this is a criminal offence. Try fronting the RSPCA with the microchip papers showing owner details and tell them you are the legal owner. Only way to dispute this is as above - make them check the register to see who the owner is. If no luck then solicitor & letter ASAP to them outlining the legal status of the animals. Regardless of what they think they are able to do the RSPCA is bound by the same legislation as everyone else. PS A complaint to the local Police might also be a good idea - have them explain to the Police their legal standing for taking & keeping the animals - the Police are required to get back to you with this information & also ask them to officially record the details of the dispute for future reference. Nothing like talking quitely & carrying a big stick when the time is right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loving my Oldies Posted December 27, 2012 Share Posted December 27, 2012 Knowing (not first hand, just DOL and media) what some RSPCA divisions are capable of, I would be paying the adoption fee and getting the dogs out ASAP. Don't forget, the RSPCA will spend any amount on legal fees if they are challenged and if they decide to dig their heels in. I wouldn't trust them not to even kill the dogs if they felt they were being painted into a corner. If they feel their authority is being challenged they will fight tooth and nail. Don't ever trust them to put the dog/s first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mita Posted December 27, 2012 Share Posted December 27, 2012 Do you know anyone at all with decent fencing, no kids, and no other dogs... and who can apply to adopt them? Once they are out of there, the new "owner" can immediately sign them over to you... T. My opinion, too. I'd get the dogs out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moody Posted December 27, 2012 Share Posted December 27, 2012 Even if RSPCA did give a verbal response, the fact that they made no contact with the registered owner of the dog, on its face, is evidence to support either a) they didn't scan, or b) they did scan but failed to make contact with the owner. It is very difficult to assert that it is a problem with the chip if this has occured with both dogs. However, a case of negligence will only be relevant if there is some sort of loss. In this case, it would have to be the loss of the dogs, but let's hope this this doesn't happen, or the loss of the funds involved in getting them out of the pound, but neither of those things has happened yet. There are also possible questions about RSPCA having failed in its duty of care towards the dogs for keeping them in the pound for so long when a cursory check could have reunited them with their owners long ago, and the fact that a behaviouralist has had to be brought in supports the breach of duty of care position, but practically, this is not necessarily going to offer you immediate assistance in retrieving the dogs either. I think it borders on extortion to refuse to release the dogs without reimbursement of behaviouralist fees. I'm not familiar with the cases that obviously make people in this list concerned that the RSPCA would take retribution against anyone who "challenged" their authority by putting down the dogs, but given the comments in this thread, that is clearly a very real concern in the minds of some people. This combination of factors is really disturbing. I think you need to front up to the RSPCA with both a letter of advice from a lawyer and the media in tow. The letter need only be a few paragraphs long, basically advising you that have no liability to reimburse RSPCA for the fess of the behaviouralist, that you are entitled to instant reclaim of the dogs under the normal procedures and fees for your particular circumstances. The letter should be quite strong in complaining about holding the dogs pending payment of these fees and the consequent feeling of coercion that you have felt. But, if the media is to be present, don't go too far with this and do be careful about any possible allegations made against the RSPCA publicly in case they allege there has been a defamation against them. Depending on the level of threat that you feel, please do create a record of other cases that you know about where the RSPCA has taken retribution by killing the animal and use that information judiciously (i.e. not publicly). Lawyers can be painfully slow to turn around these sort of letters so you'll need to be quick. It would be worth ringing the Law Society to find out if any of the larger firms do pro bono work for animal welfare. I'm not sure that they would be all that interested if it is a singular case/singular owner, but if this is a pattern of beahviour that results in real risks to the animal, they might be more interested. You will need to compile a record of past cases to demonstrate that pattern. Good luck, I hope it all works out for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted December 27, 2012 Share Posted December 27, 2012 I would pay the money then sort out what can be done to get it back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninahartland Posted December 28, 2012 Share Posted December 28, 2012 I wouldnt trust the rspca as far as i could throw them Must be someone that can "adopt" them in SA and sort it out after as someone else has said......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Are You Serious Jo Posted December 28, 2012 Share Posted December 28, 2012 I would except I won't fit their criteria. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheridan Posted December 28, 2012 Share Posted December 28, 2012 The OP posted on 23 December. Is there an update? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indigirl Posted December 28, 2012 Author Share Posted December 28, 2012 No in a holding pattern, waiting on more info. Wild love someone to adopt them and hand them over to us, we would reimburse their costs. However the criteria the rspca has set for anyone adopting them is making it difficult to find someone to do this for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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