One day retro/vintage sale day!!!!

Sadly still no more news on the new shop and we are currently swamped with amazing stock, but no way of showing and selling it. Until now.......

On Saturday 30th May, Recycle, Reuse, Restyle, an eco credit crunch beating event is being held at St Phillips' Church, Mill Rd Baptist Church and outside the former Wilco shop. In addition to tips on how to save money and become more eco friendly, we will be showing and selling a small range of our amazing retro & vintage stock. Charity shops, retro & vintage clothing and clothes customization are after all "the new black", or maybe the new Green!

We'll be in one of the Church halls from 10-4 pm, so come along and find some treasures.

St Phillips: View Larger Map



Mill Road Baptist Church: View Larger Map

Freedom Food Egg Saga continues

Alice Clark, senior farm animal scientist with the RSPCA, said she was working with the egg industry to gather the evidence necessary for the RSPCA to be able to support the change. She said the RSPCA had asked scientists at Bristol University to look into the issue, but Tom Vesey said, "We don’t have that much time. The suspicion is that the RSPCA is prevaricating. I get the feeling the RSPCA finds it best to say nothing. It says it is looking for evidence, but that is like proving a negative. This could drag on for 12 months or more and there could well be a shortage of eggs. The shortage could be filled with imports, many of them of questionable welfare standard. That would do nothing for animal welfare."

Alice Clark told the Ranger that she was just as keen as the egg industry to press on with an evaluation of the potential impact on welfare. "It’s not something that we have closed the door on; we are keen to look at it," said Alice. She said the evidence about the potential effect on animal welfare did not exist at the moment, but she had been holding meetings on possible trials.

She said the RSPCA was asking scientists at Bristol University to look into the issue as part of an existing study under way at the university. The study was set up to look into range enhancement. Scientists are one year into a three-year project. "Bristol are very keen to do that, so that should be under way."

Read it all...

Why isn't RSPCA Week a success?

RSPCA week does raise significant amounts of money for animal welfare, but why isn't it more successful than it is?

Every year we appeal for volunteers to help collect, but very few actually come forward. As a comparision: over four thousand calls were made to the rehoming line, set up when the St Bernards became available for adoption, within the space of a few days.

I think there are several, interconnected reasons for the difference:

• The St Bernards appeal offered a single, heart-tugging story. "Bread and butter" collections to support routine animal welfare work don't have the same immediacy.
• People may genuinely believe that the RSPCA doesn't really have a pressing need to generate funds. I've even had kindly-meant offers of help to take donated sales goods to the Sue Ryder shop to get rid of it so that it doesn't take up storage space.
• Most branch committees are run by very few, over-worked individuals. This means the people organising RSPCA week are generally also trying to do other things. Volunteer collectors may get the impression that things are disorganised and badly-run, and they may feel unappreciated if they don't get their collection results back quickly after they've returned their boxes.
• Most collectors expect to be putting in a few hours as part of a well-organised rota of hundreds of individuals. There seems to be a vicious circle whereby the volunteer who finds she is the only person collecting at a particular store decides the organisers can't have put in very much effort to recruit collectors and that she probably won't bother next year.
• People who are already very involved in caring for animals are often quite dissatisfied with the RSPCA — sometimes because they feel RSPCA campaigns aren't radical enough; sometimes because they think our campaigns go too far, and sometimes because they have unrealistic expectations of what is physically possible for us to do in terms of practical animal welfare. This means our potential volunteers and helpers are probably drawn mainly from a population which is initially less committed (people who might collect for an hour, but wouldn't expect to be asked to put in a whole day, for example).

RSPCA Birmingham Animal Centre

Birmingham is a large centre run by RSPCA HQ, but the basic problems of rehoming animals are applicable to all RSPCA groups

Rabbits in urgent need

The Rabbit Residence rescue in Hertfordshire, the Mayhew Animal Rescue in London and the RSPCA are looking to rehome 18 rabbits in urgent need of rehoming from a 'city farm' in London.  All of the rabbits will be checked over by the Mayhew's vets, however, unfortunately both the Mayhew and the Rabbit Residence are absolutely full at the moment so the rabbits have nowhere to go.

If anybody could provide a good home for any of these rabbits then please do get in touch with Caroline at the Rabbit Residence. Her number is 07904 397378, and her email is rabbit_residence@hotmail.com

The best way to contact Caroline is by text or email. All the rabbits will be checked over by the Mayhew's vets, and, if necessary, they can be transported to anybody who can provide a good home. It would also be a great help if anyone was able to adopt some of the rabbits currently at the Mayhew or Rabbit Residence in order to free up space so that others can come in. 

Some of the rabbits currently with Rabbit Residence can be viewed in their rehoming gallery. There is also information about the correct conditions for keeping rabbits on the website.

Homes needed for ex-battery hens

Homes needed for 11,000 Battery hens by 29th June!!

Little Hen Rescue would like to make contact with people interested in taking on ex-battery hens. They're not an RSPCA group, but they are well organised and have sensible policies on selecting suitable homes. If they are not satisfied that you would be capable of providing suitable free-range conditions for chickens, they will not rehome birds with you.

I should stress that they are an entirely legal rescue; they make agreements with farmers who are about to dispose of "spent" hens who are no longer economically viable as commercial layers. 

Their next rescue event is due to take place on 29th June and they need to have enough homes to accommodate 11,000 hens by that date.

Please use the form on their website to contact them if you are interested in taking on a group of hens. They're based in Norfolk (with an outpost in Lincolnshire) and you would need to be able to arrange collection from there.

New charity shop

The process of purchasing the lease of 61 Burleigh Street is proving to be very protracted and I know that some of our supporters are feeling frustrated about this. We have to follow the legal advice of our solicitors, as we would potentially be putting the branch funds at risk if we were to sign the lease without getting the proper safeguards.

At the moment, we are waiting for the freehold owner of the shop to provide what is called a "licence to assign", which is a legal document confirming that the current tenants (who currently lease the building) have permission to transfer the lease to us and that there are no additional conditions, on top of those in the actual lease, which could be detrimental to our ability to use the shop or result in increased cost to us. 

We have the purchase funds waiting in our bank account and a mountain of sales stock stored at 188 Mill road, so once the lease and licence are available, we should be able to open very quickly.

Happy endings - pics of Nicholas in his new home

Two rats

This is one of a pair of rats who were found running loose in the street by a member of the public and brought to our clinic. They're both visibly aged and this one has an injury which I suspect is the result of him chewing out the stitches after removal of a tumour.

At this time of life it's fairly unlikely that they would suddenly make a break for freedom off their own bat and the most likely explanation is that they were turned loose. They're both friendly and well-handled, and my guess is that the owner couldn't face up to the responsibility of deciding either to take them for euthanasia or organise continued treatment. Cost may have been part of this — a private vet would probably charge in the region of £30 to put down and dispose of two rats — but some of it may just have been inability to cope with the idea of sickness and death. In the past we've had stray hamsters with horrible-looking tumours which had obviously been released because the owner just couldn't bear to look at them. 

The clinic vets say these two are quite happy at the moment, but they've probably not got long before we have to put them to sleep.

Music and pictures as well as books at 188 Mill Road

Just a reminder that our charity shop at 188 Mill road sells collectable vinyl records, CDs and art as well as second-hand books. 

We're always grateful for donations of any of these.

RSPCA East Region Bull Breed Neutering Campaign

The Staffordshire bull terrier is the dog most likely to become unwanted in the RSPCA’s East region. 

So far this year 12 of the 94 abandoned dogs collected by the RSPCA in the East region are Staffies or Staffie crosses.  [These figures were collected in March, and we've taken in several more since then, so I expect the same is true of other branches]. In 2008, 90 of the 354 abandoned dogs rescued were Staffies or Staffie types, and in 2007, 97 of the 406 were Staffies/ crossbreeds.

RSPCA branches and animal centres in the East region report that Staffies and Staffie crosses are by far the breed that they see the most of. More than three quarters of Staffies/Staffie crosses taken in were male.

RSPCA superintendent Kelly Rivers said: “Staffies and other bull dogs and terriers are wonderful dogs. The problems are not usually with them but at the other end of the lead, with owners who buy them for the wrong reasons. All too often they are also used as money making machines and have several litters of puppies each year which are sold on to equally unscrupulous owners.”

“We want to see bull breeds who are properly trained, socialised and cared for. This duty of care includes neutering and microchipping your dog – no excuses.”

Many owners either refuse to have their pets neutered because they either want to protect their dog’s ‘tough’ image or because they want to breed from them - often to make money.

Of the Staffordshires, and other bull terriers taken in, half of RSPCA branches in the East said that those neutered count for less than five per cent of those taken in.

The most common reasons for giving up these dogs were that owners could no longer care for them or could not afford to keep them.

Bull terriers and bull dogs, through no fault of their own, suffer a bad press due to their aggressive image and popularity as status symbols. The high numbers of abandonments and unwanted pets reflect the fact that many people who buy them do so for the wrong reasons then quickly tire of looking after them. Sadly, these are the same people who neglect to neuter their animals, leading to needless health problems and many more unwanted puppies.

RSPCA Cambridge is taking part in the campaign and, if you live in our area and you are on benefits, we can send you out a voucher towards part of the cost of getting your bull terrier neutered. This can be used at most local vets. The map at the side of this blog shows the extent of our branch area. To apply for a voucher, email neuter@rspca-cambridge.org.uk

We would also like bull terrier owners to complete our short survey to help us get a better understanding of why some bull terriers become unwanted, while others spend their whole lives as well-loved pets.

Animal welfare statistics for March 2009

During March we rehomed a total of 11 animals and neutered 51 (16 dogs 32 cats 2 rabbits and 1 ferret). We chipped 20 and provided low-cost veterinary treatment for 358 owned animals (214 dogs, 124 cats, 9 rabbits and 11 miscellaneous species) and 35 stray animals (4 dogs, 31 cats).

We had to put down 1 dog, 3 cats and 3 miscellaneous species on veterinary advice.

In comparison with March 2008, the neutering figures are way up — I'm not sure if this is because more people are aware they can get help with the cost of neutering their pets, or because more people are feeling short of money.

Microchipping and older cats

Fenella is off to the vet tomorrow after giving me a nasty scare. She's not yet chipped, mainly because every time she sees a vet they say, "Poor old lady," (her, not me!), "Why not wait a bit to see how she's going to go on before bothering her?" It's been seven months now, and they're quite right, her kidneys might pack up any day and she'd have to be put to sleep.

However, at the moment she's feeling perfectly well and the latest course of antibiotic has energised her to the point at which a quiet totter round the garden and back to bed is no longer enough, so she took herself off for the day. This is precisely the sort of behaviour that leads to older cats being picked up and handed in as strays. To someone who doesn't know, they look thin and people assume it means no-one is feeding them and they ought to be taken to a rescue organisation. This is probably why Fen was brought to us in the first place. Older cats may not normally wander far, but it is particularly important that they are chipped so that they don't end up taking places needed by genuinely unwanted animals.

Anyway, lesson learned; she's not going out again until she has her identichip.

Pregnant cat

I thought this was going to be simple; her owner phoned first thing asking for financial help because she was unsteady and didn't seem to be able to lift her tail. This is commonly the result of an infected bite near the base of the tail, which usually responds well to antibiotics, so I authorised £50 for first aid at the closest private vet, with the owner to transfer her to the RSPCA clinic tomorrow morning if further treatment was needed.

Turns out she's almost certainly been hit by a car, and she's currently not able to work the muscles that should expel urine from her bladder, so she needs inpatient treatment with periodic manual emptying of the bladder. The second problem is that she's very heavily pregnant and near term. More or less the same set of abdominal muscles are responsible for pushing out kittens... so she'll have to have a caesarian. The muscle problems may or may not clear up with time - there's nothing the vets can do other than supportive treatment as it depends on whether the nerves which control the muscle have been destroyed beyond recovery or just damaged and capable of regrowth. If she doesn't get back enough function to control her own bladder there's really no option other than euthanasia, as it will eventually damage her kidneys.

When all this was explained to her owner, his immediate reaction was to ask for her to be put down straight away. The nurses didn't want to do this and persuaded him to sign the cat over. One of the vets has kindly offered to do the caesarian in her own time (to keep costs for us as low as possible) and the nurses will then take it in turns to foster her together with the kittens to give them all at least a fighting chance.

Injured staffie

He was found in Milton Country Park by a member of the public and taken to Village Vets for first aid. They think he's definitely got a broken jaw and possibly a fractured leg, so we're covering the cost of first aid with them and one of our volunteer drivers is going to transfer him to the clinic tomorrow morning.

No details yet about his general appearance, other than that he's very friendly. If he might be yours, please contact Village Vets (before tomorrow) or email rosemary@rspca-cambridge.org.uk (after then).

The puppies who were dumped in the Newnham village play area

 

These puppies were found just before Easter in a rubbish bin on the Newnham Village play area, They're about 6 weeks old.

Update on the St Bernards

It sounds as if the response to the appeal to rehome the St Bernards is going really well. The Northants Evening Telegraph reports that the dedicated number (0300 123 8000) set up to answer enquiries about adopting one of them has already had over 3,000 calls. Even if less than 10% have suitable facilities for such large dogs, it looks as if all of them are going to find homes with no more waiting.

Let's hope that some of the callers who don't adopt a St Bernard will consider some of the other thousands of dogs who also need homes—some of them very much less challenging to care for simply because they're a more manageable size.

Happy Easter, but please remember chocolate is dangerous for dogs

Enjoy your easter eggs, but please, only share special dog-safe ones with your pets. Human chocolate is dangerous for dogs because of its high theobromine content.

Found: Rottweiler

He was found wandering on a busy road when one of the Vet School nurses was passing, so she took him in to avoid him getting hit by a car. We're going to take him to Park Side police kennels over the weekend so he can be transferred to Wood Green Animal Shelters on Tuesday, after the holiday, as they have the local authority contract to rehome uninjured stray dogs.

News on the 101 St Bernards

I wasn't planning to write about this as we don't have any of the dogs in our branch facilities for rehoming, but there doesn't seem to have been much coverage on the local media because of all the other newsworthy things that are going on, so I'll put up the details from the press release.

The RSPCA is appealing to people living in the East region who can offer a new home to one of more than 100 St Bernards which were removed from kennels in Northamptonshire in December 2008*.

Since then the dogs have been cared for in private boarding kennels on behalf of the RSPCA. However, as they remained the property of their owner, the Society was unable to rehome them.

Now ownership of the St Bernards has been signed over to the RSPCA and so good new homes can be sought.

The dogs are being rehomed in small groups through various RSPCA animal centres. Priority will be given to potential owners who live nearest to where the dogs are currently being cared for to limit how far they will have to travel to their new homes. In the east region, priority will be given to people living in Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire and Nottinghamshire. However, enquiries from other areas will still be taken.

People who would like one of the dogs - or to donate to the RSPCA to help it continue its vital work - are asked to call 0300 123 8000. (Please, don't use any other RSPCA numbers if it is busy as very high profile rescues have blocked emergency veterinary contact lines in the past, putting sick animals at risk.)

St Bernards are large dogs and, as these particular animals have lived in kennels all their lives, they are not used to walking on leads and have not been house trained. They will need experienced homes where there is a reasonably large amount of space. They will also need regular grooming.

Paul Williams, RSPCA animal welfare manager in the RSPCA’s east region, said: “These dogs will need special care and patience. They all have good temperaments but their kennel background means that they will need owners with the knowledge and time to help them settle into their new homes.

“So far caring for these St Bernards has cost the RSPCA around £100,000 and all donations, however big or small, will be gratefully received. If you would like to rehome one of the dogs or make a donation so we can continue to care for animals like these, please call us on 0300 123 8000.”

The majority of the dogs range in age from two years to eight years and older and should make very loyal and rewarding pets for those able to give them the care they desperately need.

Please note that a donation will be required in return for rehoming one of the dogs which helps cover the cost of their neutering, vaccinations, microchipping and veterinary check.

* The total number of St Bernards rose from 101 to 106 when puppies were born after the dogs were taken into the RSPCA’s care.

• RSPCA animal centres have already found a few of the dogs good new homes.

• Possible criminal proceedings are ongoing and for this reason we are unable to discuss the original condition of the dogs or how they were kept.

Missing Oscar — FOUND

Please would anyone who sees a strange tabby and white short-haired cat in the Petersfield/St Matthews area of Cambridge give his worried owner a call on 01223 311828, or email me at rosemary@rspca-cambridge.org.uk

The long-haired tabby and white cat who moves around the same area is Elvis, and he is not lost.

Oscar was adopted fairly recently from an animal welfare group in Liverpool and he had previously lived indoors all the time, so his behaviour isn't quite normal.

Update 03/04/2009
He's turned up, a street away, bit thin and full of ticks, but otherwise fine.

Separation anxiety and rescue dogs

Probably the most frequent cause for rescued dogs being returned after an unsuccessful placement is separation anxiety. This is one reason why we are usually strict about not rehoming to owners who will need to leave their dogs for very long periods. Many rescue dogs are very anxious that their new owner will disappear and not return — after all their previous owner did just that from the dog's point of view. However all of us need to be able to go out sometimes on errands where we can't be accompanied by our pets, so new owners need to be forewarned that this may be a problem and prepared to take action to cope.

One useful tool is a dog crate. This should not degenerate into a prison where your dog is locked up for hours on end, but it does provide a way to keep him safe and your posessions undamaged, while you train him to be less anxious. Properly used, the crate will become a den area where your dog feels secure; knows you will return; can rest comfortably and knows he will have some special toys that he does not have access to anywhere else. If distress at being separated from you causes your dog's house-training to be erratic, a crate lined with newspapers and standing on a washable floor will make cleaning up not too unpleasant.

There is some advice about training to relieve separation anxiety on the dog club site. It may also help (preferably before you acquire your rescue dog) to read some of the books which have been written about adopting a rescue dog, such as Understanding the Rescue Dog, Living with a rescued dog, or Second Chance: living with a rescued dog.

Seeing Pink Swans

A genuine picture from the East Winch Wildlife Centre's Annual Report to local branches. The swan was from Brundall, Norfolk. The contaminant was never identified, but was incredibly difficult to wash off. Fortunately the treatment was successful, but the swan was in care for much longer than usual before it could be released back into the wild.

The Wildlife Centre's Open day this year will be Sunday 5 July, from 10 am to 4 pm. We visited the Centre a few years ago as a "works outing" for RSPCA Cambridge branch volunteers and it is very well worth seeing. They always need old towels as absorbent disposable bedding for animals, so if you are coming, it would be very helpful if you could collect up your unwanted old towels, flannels and blankets and bring them to donate. This saves the petrol which would be used if towels were donated elsewhere and had to be specially transported to the centre.

First kitten of the season

Our Chairman, Claire, collected this morning a 9 months old mother cat and her baby which was born this morning. At the moment mum is very shocked and not paying much attention to the baby. So Claire is having to give the kit a top up with climicat (artificial cat milk).

They were handed to the vet in Cambourne with 3 other kittens which were all dead. Mummy is beautiful and doesn’t mind people touching her and latching baby on.

Make mine chocolate - but not if you are a cat or a dog!

As Easter approaches, please remember that ordinary chocolate is poisonous to dogs, because it contains a stimulant called theobromine, which we can detoxify safely, but carnivores like dogs and cats cannot. Special dog chocolate is safe for pets because it contains little or no actual cocoa bean extracts.

You also need to be careful about using cocoa bean husks as garden mulch if your dog likes to pick up stuff and chew it.

Myxomatosis reminder

Please don't forget that mosquitos and biting midges will become active about a month from now as the weather gets warmer. Now is the time to make sure that your rabbits are up to date with their myxomatosis vaccinations so they are protected from this dreadful disease, which is spread by biting insects.

If you are on benefits, you can get your rabbits boosters done at our clinic for only £7.

Please remember our charity shops

Spring is just around the corner and if you are having a clear-out, please remember that our charity shops can make good use of discarded textile items—things like curtains and cushion covers as well as clothes. Prices for rags to recycle are still good, so even worn-out items can still help us raise much needed funds. 

Non textile items need to be in reasonably good condition so that they can be sold in the shop, as they don't have a value when recycled. 

Please make sure donations are reasonably clean (no abandoned sticky sweets in pockets, please!) so that they're not unpleasant for our volunteers to sort. 

If you have a mix of worn-out/damaged and nearly new clothes, it is extremely helpful to us if you can pre-sort them into separate bags so that the worn-out ones can go straight into the recycling area. 

Donations can be handed in at either of our shops: 156 High Street, Newmarket or 188 Mill Road, Cambridge. We can usually arrange to collect if you have large amounts and live reasonably close to Cambridge.

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Found Cat: Royston

She's a tabby, wearing a collar with magnetic tag. She was taken to Royston Veterinary Centre, Valley Rise, Newmarket Road, Royston, on Tuesday evening after being hit by a car. Now at the University Vet School Hospital. She has a badly fractured pelvis which will need surgical repair, but otherwise seems fairly bright. Email rosemary@rspca-cambridge.org.uk if you think she might be yours.

Clinic licensed for another two years

Steve Cheetham, the RSPCA Chief Veterinary Officer inspected our clinic yesterday, and we've been informally told that we've passed and will get our licence to run for another two years. I'm awaiting the full report to see whether he's recommended any things we ought to improve. All RSPCA branch clinics are visited every two years to check that they are being run in a proper and professional manner and that we are complying with the law on storage of medicines etc.

Particular thanks to Paul, our cleaner, who does a sterling job keeping our surroundings hygienic and safe for the animals.

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Clinic entrance off Whitehill Road

Sadly StreetView doesn't seem to think it ought to walk down private roads. We are the first turning to the right of the driveway, behind all the greenery.

Science books at 188 Mill Road: continued

You can also browse and buy online (there are more books in the shop, so please call in as well if you are in Cambridge).

Ada Lovelace day

Today is the first Ada Lovelace day, celebrating women in science and technology. There are actually quite a lot of women who are prominent in the scientific side of promoting animal welfare; examples are Jane Goodall, Mary Midgley, Marion Dawkins, Karen Pryor and Temple Grandin.

Points from the Regional Board meeting

Lots of animal welfare activity going on, but the economic situation will mean retrenchment in many areas. In the East region, education posts falling vacant will not be filled, and the Branch Development Advisers will be reduced from 5 to 4. It seems to be generally felt that the RSPCA is in a better position than it was in the 2002 downturn, but we still need to make savings overall of £9 Million on the RSPCA's total annual budget.

As the cost of boarding animals until they can be rehomed is such a large part of the budget of both Region and the Branches, we need to redouble our efforts to achieve rapid throughput of animals.  We also need to work to increase income from sources which are under our control, such as our charity shops, visits to animal centres etc.

The new "Facing the Future" tool to help branch committees analyse their own branch's strengths and weaknesses will be coming into operation this year, following last year's trial. Committees will be asked to complete the spreadsheet immediately following their AGMs, when their annual report and accounts are freshly out, so that the analysis can be as relevant as possible. The spreadsheet records finances, numbers of volunteers, branch resources (e.g. shops, animal centres, clinics), current levels of animal welfare activities and what could be done to increase provision of welfare services in the branch area.

Lost Cat

Thistle, who has been lost from Tenison Avenue (CB1 2DX) since the weekend. He is a small, very nervous male, who is microchipped. His collar contains his phone number but he may have lost it. The numbers are 01223 328 490 or 07714 090 064

Regional Board at Block Fen Animal Centre

We had the chance to take a look round the new rabbit accommodation and I took some photos.

One of the outside runs, showing steps to indoor raised sleeping area. Note the litter trays which make cleaning out easier and also make a great "selling point" for any adopters considering keeping their rabbits as indoor pets.

Another view of an outside run, showing plastic tubes for behavioural enrichment.

Slightly blurred pic. of the raised indoor area. Notice how confident the rabbits are. Being on a level with the human viewers makes it easier to clean them out and helps display them to adopters. It also seems to make the rabbits more relaxed if humans are on a level rather than above them.

Rabbit going up the steps to enter the sleeping quarters via "rabbit-flap". We saw the rabbits confidently hopping in and out and they seem to learn to operate the flap very readily.

Lost Cat

Missing after a run in with another cat on Friday 13th March 2009 at around 11pm - very friendly and talkative, very pretty sandy grey shorthair tabby female with distinctive stripy markings/swirls with fluffy caramel coloured belly.

She is around 5 years old. She likes to get in small spaces/cupboards and is very curious of garages/sheds

Lost from the Duxford area. Any sightings, please phone +44 (0) 845 497 3718 (work 9-5pm) or
01223 830 702 (home)

Missing sparrow(s)

On Radio 4 last night. It seems to be conclusive that cats are not to blame and that loss of garden shrubbery to "easy-care" decking and concrete is a more likely culprit, because it reduces the number of insects on which sparrows feed their chicks.

Natural England have a database which lets you find garden plants that are particularly helpful for different animal species. There is an entry for house sparrows.  

Stray ferret

Dave Dodds of the local ferret rescue very kindly agreed to take last night's stray ferret, found wandering in Girton. We'll cover seven days boarding with him, plus the cost of neutering. If you've lost a ferret in the Girton area, please email Dave at dave_dodds@hotmail.com

If you're thinking of getting a ferret as a pet, please consider adopting a rescue. Dave nearly always has lots needing good homes, and because he is very knowledgeable he's well placed to give you advice to get you started correctly.

Thank-you!

Thanks to Scaltback School, Newmarket who have raised £150.00 from a Swimming Gala for the RSPCA.

Science books at 188 Mill Road

In honour of Cambridge Science Festival, the RSPCA Bookshop is featuring a display of second-hand science books. We have some excellent bargains, including a copy of the classic Infant Chimpanzee and Human Child.

Another benefit of getting your cat chipped

You can now get cat flaps which detect your cat's chip in order to release the locking mechanism. This ensures that only your own cats can use the flap without the use of uncomfortable and potentially dangerous collars. Cat flaps can sometimes be a bit of a mixed blessing for a timid cat because of the risk that they might allow rivals to invade what should be a secure haven.

There are currently two UK manufacturers, PetPorte and Sureflap. The SureFlap system is nicely appropriate for Cambridge Science Festival fortnight as the technology that powers it was developed by Cambridge Resonant Technologies Ltd of the St John's Innovation Centre

Equine questionnaire

If you own horses, or ride regularly, please complete the questionnaire on planning for your horse's future at http://www.lockwooddonkeycentre.org.uk/questionnaire.htm

Animal welfare statistics for February

During February 2009, we treated 309 owned (199 dogs, 97 cats, 5 rabbits and 8 miscellaneous small animals) and 34 unowned animals (3 dogs and 31 cats) and rehomed six cats and one dog. We neutered 20 dogs 15 cats and 19 rabbits.

Vaccinating against myxomatosis

Spring is just around the corner, and with it will come the first of the two annual peaks of myxomatosis (the second is in the Autumn). If it is more than six months since your rabbit was last vaccinated then you need to be thinking of arranging for a booster.

Every year rabbits are brought to us suffering from myxomatosis because their owners did not realise that urban (even indoor) rabbits are still at risk, because the disease can be spread by biting insects. Vaccination does not provide 100% protection, but a vaccinated rabbit will almost always throw off the disease with no permanent ill effects, while an unvaccinated rabbit will almost always die.

Branch AGM provisional date

The provisional date for Cambridge Branch's Annual General Meeting is 30th June. 7.30 p.m. for 8 p.m. start at the Friends Meeting House, Jesus Lane, Cambridge. This the time when branch members have their chance to elect new committee members to run the branch in the following year. 

 
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We need to elect a minimum of seven committee members, and at least ten adult voting members must be present for a valid election. If we fail to achieve this (fairly low) standard, then the meeting fails and we will either be asked to try again or else dissolve the committee and hand control over to the National RSPCA until such time as a valid committee can be elected. 

If you are a branch member, please do try to attend your local branch AGM — apart from other considerations it is very embarrassing, and a waste of time and money, when senior staff from the Region turn out to an AGM and the branch can't even muster ten members to make it worthwhile.

The RSPCA is very dependent on volunteer effort. If you've ever thought "the RSPCA ought to do more about..." this is your chance to make a difference.

Music in charity shops

Bah, humbug! We already have to pay a £70 fee per shop each year to the PRS for permission to listen to the radio and it's now looking as if we will have an additional fee to pay to PPL. I have never downloaded music without paying for it, or made copies of tapes or CDs, but I do resent being forced to hand over the equivalent of the cost of two spay operations for something that has already been paid for by the radio station. I resent it even more when the volunteers are actually listening to the cricket and not playing music at all. 

East Winch Wildlife Hospital seal release

The RSPCA East Winch Wildlife Hospital is our regional facility for treating injured wildlife. It's paid for and run by the national RSPCA.

To view the video properly, scroll it sideways so that it centres on the page, then hit replay.

Bramble clearing working party March 29th

We're going to make a start on clearing the brambles and piles of brush in the area at the back of the animal clinic on Sunday March 29th. Start 9 am (yes - I do know this is the day the clocks go forward), finish around 1 p.m. This is the fire exit route for the rooms to the rear of the building, so we need to keep it free of obstructions.

We could do with more volunteers (turn up any time between 9 and 1). You'll need gardening gloves, and it would be very helpful if you could bring secateurs or loppers.

Another stray rabbit

Found wandering in Caribou Way, Cherry Hinton at about 5 pm on Tuesday, 10th March. He's an un-neutered male, possibly mini-Rex; mainly white with some fawn markings.

Lost Cat - NOW FOUND

He's a tabby and white, neutered male, very recently adopted (not from us!) and got out of the house only a few days afterwards, so may be trying to make his way back to his old home. Please email rosemary@rspca-cambridge.org.uk if a new cat of this description turns up in the Cambridge area. Adopter is an OAP and worried about him.

Update: now found.

Lost cats again

From our inbox:

"Dear RSPCA,

I filled in a form yesterday regarding my cat “Toffee” who had gone missing. I just wanted to let you know that we found him last night. He had been accidentally shut in a garage in a house in an adjoining road to us.

I also wanted to let you know that I found the advice on your website saying that cats normally patrol a territory of up to 7 gardens in all directions particularly helpful. It was this that prompted us to renew our search of that area and to keep calling his name. Eventually we heard him miaowing in reply and were able to track down where he was shut in."

It's worth stressing again that many "lost" cats are actually stuck in some way. Healthy adult cats very rarely get lost in the sense of not knowing where home is unless they have been moved away from familiar surroundings (for example escaping while en route to the vet). Even when a cat has been badly frightened (e.g. by a dog or by fireworks) he or she will normally hide and try to work their way back home once things have settled down. This may not be possible if the cat has crossed some kind of barrier, such as a busy road or a fence that can only be jumped in one direction. Cats who have some kind of illness (e.g. epilepsy) which causes them to become disorientated may stray and need to be confined.  Un-neutered tom cats will wander over great distances and probably do know where home is, but won't "check-in" very regularly. They may be prevented from returning home if a more ferocious male takes over the land where their house is situated. This is one of the reasons why neutering has such a positive effect in prolonging the life of a male cat.

Comparing our site statistics for lost and found cats it's extremely striking that more than half of our incoming injured male strays are entire while less than a third of male cats reported missing are un-neutered (and those are mainly kittens).

Animal shelter management books

Shelter Medicine, by Lila Miller and Stephen Zawistowski, is a comprehensive textbook on the veterinary aspects of running a successful animal shelter and as such it's quite heavy-going and technical. It's organised as stand-alone chapters on various aspects of shelter management and is a book to dip into repeatedly rather than read cover to cover. That said, it's much more than just a textbook for veterinary staff with an interest in animal centres and would benefit anyone working in, or on the management committee of, an animal rescue organisation. In addition to purely veterinary aspects of animal care it also includes chapters on cruelty prosecutions, foster care, spay/neuter clinics, animal behaviour, feral cat control and animal rescue in disaster situations. 

It's written for use in America, so readers need to be aware that the legal situation will often be different in the UK, and there will be differences in the prevalence of some animal diseases (we are extremely fortunate that rabies is not normally a concern over here). If there's a similar book designed for the UK, I've not yet found it, so this is probably the best available text in spite of that drawback. 

Infectious Disease Management in Animal Shelters, by Lila Miller and Kate Hurley is a more narrowly defined book than Shelter Medicine and focuses only on control of disease in shelters. 

More dog accidents

Caution about leaving children and dogs together works both ways. Very young children don't know their own strength relative to small puppies and they can very easily drop them because they're not as co-ordinated as an older child or adult.

Last night's staffie puppy with difficulty breathing turned out to have several broken ribs, probably because he'd either been dropped or helped onto something like a high table and then fallen off. Staffies often don't react to pain by squealing the way other breeds might, and this one's owners only realised there was a problem because the little fellow was gasping for breath because half of his lungs wasn't working any longer.

This sort of thing is also why rats and hamsters aren't really suitable for very young children. Being dropped can badly hurt or kill them, and they will bit really hard if little hands clutch them too tight. Adult cats who like children are probably the best bet with toddlers as they're robust enough not to get hurt (and fast and strong enough to get away from an excessively enthusiastic child).

Vet School family fun day: 21 March 14:00 - 17:00

Come and see a fully functional hospital for four-legged patients. Visit the Imaging Department, Small and Large Animal wards, Intensive Care Unit, theatre suite and much more. Guided tours available. There will be plenty of 'hands-on' displays but remember the patients are sick so you won't be able to play with them! No dogs, please.

Location:
The Queen's Veterinary School Hospital
Madingley Road
Cambridge
CB3 0ES

View map

All ages, no booking required. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

The Vet School provide our clinic's veterinary services, so this is an opportunity to take a look "behind the scenes". The family fun day is part of Cambridge University's Science Festival

The Feral Cat Manual

Published by the Feline Advisory Bureau, The Feral Cat Manual is probably the best and most comprehensive guide to helping feral cats available in the UK. It's used by SNIP International and other groups for their training workshops.

Puppies and dummies

This happens more often than you might think. Also here, here and here. The victims are usually puppies, presumably because larger dogs are either more cautious about what they swallow or more likely to pass something relatively small and soft through their intestines without getting a blockage. 

Unfortunately if the puppy does get an obstruction as a result of swallowing a baby's dummy or a bottle's rubber teat it will die if not operated on as an emergency and the operation is likely to be very expensive.

Another one this morning; a Jack Russell terrier. The puppy's too ill to wait for the clinic session tomorrow and isn't eligible for our clinic's emergency cover because he's not registered. Even with our maximum level of help the owner's now got a bill of £500 to cover. She may get some help from the Blue Cross and has now filled in a form to register with the PDSA (I don't know whether they might help retrospectively). 

Parvo again

Yet another rottie pup with parvovirus. Village Vets think there's a chance of saving him, so he's gone to their 24 hour surgery at Milton as an inpatient where they can quarantine him from other dogs. Blue Cross and PDSA are also chipping in as this kind of isolation nursing is horribly expensive.

Members and Supporters?

One of the links at the side of this blog goes to the page where you can apply for membership of the RSPCA. Adult members receive the society magazine Animal Life several times a year and have voting rights at both local and national level. Local branches are sent lists of members within their areas so that they can send out notices of their Annual General Meeting.

Confusingly, it is possible to have signed up to make regular donations to the RSPCA without ever having filled in a membership application. Unfortunately this means that significant numbers of people think of themselves as RSPCA members but don't get any of the papers which would keep them in touch with what's happening at grassroots level. 

If you make regular donations, but don't get Animal Life then you're not listed as a member and that's why your local branch has never tried to contact you. If you follow the link to the RSPCA membership page, you'll see that there are two types of members: ordinary and friend. "Friends" used to be the term for donors who hadn't registered as members. If you know you are a Friend and you'd like to become active in your local branch but they've never been in touch, you probably became a donor before the change. If you contact HQ at Horsham, they should be able to convert your status into voting membership.

Stray rabbit

ACO Kathy has just picked up a stray rabbit from Cambridge. She (the rabbit, not Kathy!) is a very pretty white and black Netherland Dwarf - looks young and is quite friendly. Janine is looking after her for the moment, but hopefully her owner will turn up.

Branch committees

If you think you might be interested in standing for our committee this year there's still time. Branch committees are elected each year by the local branch members at the Annual General Meeting. In our case, this is normally late June, as branch accounts and an annual report on the previous year have to be available at the AGM, and ours haven't usually been audited by our accountants until early June. 

To stand for election, you need to have been a member of the RSPCA for a minimum of three months prior to the AGM (this is mainly to make it possible to ensure there's time for everyone eligible to have got onto the membership lists and been circulated with the correct AGM papers.) Before the AGM the existing committee circulate a notice of the time and place to all branch members and include nomination forms so that members can put candidates forward for election. Members of the RSPCA automatically become members of the branch where they live, unless they ask to join a different one - for example the branch where they work.

To form a committee the AGM must elect at least seven and not more than fourteen people. As it's quite hard to get as many as fourteen volunteers willing to stand, most of the time we want the meeting to vote in everyone who comes forward and is prepared to work. It's not absolutely unknown for elections to be hotly contested, but it usually only happens where there is some point of principle at issue - for example whether or not to keep a particular branch facility open.

If you think you are a member of the RSPCA and have never been circulated with AGM papers it's likely that you are actually a "supporter" instead. In this case, if you want to become involved with your local branch, the best thing to to is to contact RSPCA HQ at Horsham and ask to be switched from the supporter category to the adult member one.

Working for change

There's a growing movement in the US and Australia to press animal shelters to adopt the principles of "no-kill": basically a rejection of the idea that the majority of "unwanted" pets will have to be killed because there are far more strays than potential homes. 

One element of the strategy is to encourage voluntary animal welfare organisations to relinquish what we in this country would refer to as "the stray dogs contract" unless they can realistically aim to place all, or nearly all, animals capable of being adopted. In other words, animal welfare organisations ought not to spend funds doing society's dirty work by killing unwanted pets and so diverting money from saving animals.

This became RSPCA policy in the UK some two decades ago, and is the default position for all its branches. It was possible because of our peculiar organisation structure which means that animal welfare policy decided by the national governing council can be imposed on the branches countrywide.

It hasn't meant that no healthy animals are ever killed because they are unwanted, but the evidence suggests that a much higher percentage of animals are successfully rehomed than in the US. The 2007 Animal Welfare Indicators report collating statistics on a range of animal issues records that the RSPCA (overall) rehomed just over 70,000 animals and put down just under 4,000 for non-medical reasons (the lowest figure for five years). [Pet animal welfare indicators]

Working at arms length from the local authority pounds and shelters has its critics and means that some people will be very unhappy because there is a group of very visible animals in need and the RSPCA is not taking all of them. 

Unfortunately this can result in a vicious circle in which the branch limits its intake of animals because it has limited resources but has difficulty recruiting helpers to increase its resources so it can take more animals because people are angry about the animals who weren't taken in. Two members of the Sheffield forum say:

Q. "Looking at this thread and the earlier one about the RSPCA do I assume that we the people of Sheffield, who support the local RSPCA branch have no say in its running, or how they spend the money that we donate, does this place not have a committie that leads/gives direction to the staff ?. could we not as either a group or as individuals, contact this committie and ask them to change their direction, does the overall RSPCA headquaters at Horsham direct the local branch to this course of action ?.

How does one get onto the local committie, to try and change things, or is it a closed shop like most of these societies seem to be, anyone know ?"

A. "I wish i did know Shytalk. All i know is that people should become aware of the things the RSPCA do and DON'T do before supporting instead of just what they DO do. I am not saying they shouldn't support the RSPCA but theres many small rescue centres out there that save 100s of dogs each year from being put to sleep when they have been in pounds for a long period of time on very low funds due to people not knowing about them as most of the time the rescues are only small and arent pleading for support on television, they make do with what they have and ask around for help, they get it and make the most of it.

I would love to know how to persuade them to help pounds and rescue centres. There's been no luck so far."

Ultimately if you don't like the way your local branch is being run, you can join the RSPCA and stand for election against us. Or you can join and stand for election to work with us. We're not a closed shop and no-one will object to newcomers who want to work to increase the number of animals we can help. What can be a problem is if new recruits have a very limited agenda and want to close down existing services to release funds for their particular pet projects. There isn't much point increasing rehoming if you abandon animals who already have owners but will have to be put to sleep if there is no available veterinary help.

Can a vet refuse treatment because an owner has no money?

Yes, and No. The RCVS (Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons) which sets standards for vets in the UK states:

17. A veterinary surgeon or a lay member of staff accepting telephone calls must not refuse veterinary attention because the caller is unable to make immediate payment for the treatment. Arrangements for payment should be discussed at an early stage, but immediate first aid and pain relief should not be delayed while financial arrangements are agreed.

18. The RCVS is aware that it may be appropriate to advise euthanasia to relieve suffering, if the owner is unable to afford the fees and is ineligible for charitable treatment.

19. The RCVS has no power to set the fees that a practice charges.

Basically, this means that a vet shouldn't refuse to relieve an animal's suffering in an emergency situation BUT they are under no obligation to provide expensive life-saving treatment if there is no likelihood that they (or their employer) will be paid.

In the old days, when most vets were self-employed, many of them would do what they could for an animal and hope the owner would eventually settle up. It is much more difficult for a young vet who may not have a job next day if he costs his employer money. Add in the crippling levels of student debt which most young vets will have after qualifying and you'll see that they are in an enormously difficult situation if a client turns up with a dog who really needs £800 worth of investigations and treatment but has no money at all.

One of these turned up at 3 am this Sunday morning. The client's dog had collapsed and was pale and shocked. They weren't registered with our clinic, so they had to go to a private vet. Because of the time factor they'd run up a bill of about £130 simply by virtue of walking through the door. They'd got no money at all, and at this point the vet phoned me. Sadly there's just no way we could cover £800 for investigations that might well just reveal treatment would be futile. I offered to cover £200 in the hope that symptomatic treatment might do some good — basically this would mean starting some supportive fluids and antibiotics, but about an hour later they phoned to say the owners had decided the best thing was to put the dog to sleep.

Traffic to our main website

 If you came to this page searching for a PDSA clinic near Cambridge, please read the information about using the Cambridge RSPCA Animal Clinic. There is no PDSA clinic locally, but the RSPCA clinic is available to help pet owners on low income.

The list of keywords which brought readers to our main website's page with our policy on help with veterinary treatment costs tell an interesting story. Here's the list in full. (I think the first one really wants the University of Pennsylvania Vet School, but can't spell it.) 

The search "why do people give up their pets to the rspca or pdsa" confirms my belief that the average animal-loving member of the public has really very limited knowledge about animal charities—in this case, not enough to know that the PDSA is a purely veterinary charity.

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More genetics and animals

Studies of the damaging effects of small populations and loss of genetic variety in threatened wild animals illustrate why the loss of genetic variation in dogs is potentially such a serious welfare problem:



"Conservation genetics focuses on understanding the role and requirement of genetic variation for population persistence. Can extinction be explained by habitat destruction alone or is lack of genetic variation a part of the explanation? It is now more important than ever that we ask relevant questions about the evolutionary fate of endangered populations throughout the globe and incorporate our knowledge of evolutionary processes and the distribution of genetic diversity into effective conservation planning and action." (From the back cover).









And a cute and very readable history of genetics with special reference to tortoiseshell cats:

Pedigree dogs again

The Independent has a long Crufts article, in places a little odd:

When it comes to the health of breeding dogs, Carol is a little ambivalent. Clumber spaniels tend to be affected by a genetic deficiency called PDP1, which can retard the body's metabolism and make the dogs too exhausted to exercise. Many dogs carry the PDP1 gene and lead long happy lives without being affected. But should they be used for breeding? It's a question at the heart of the Kennel Club controversy. "If they were affected with the disease, you wouldn't breed with them," said Carol. "But you can use a carrier for mating purposes, provided it's mated with a clear dog, so you can breed it out."

She is a fan of the Kennel Club, who gave her a £4,500 grant in 2004 to test 100 dogs for the virus. [my italics]

A genetic defect isn't a virus and, if the comments to the article are anything to go by, a large part of the fury over the whole pedigree dog question stems from people not understanding the basic science. 

Every one of us has some deleterious genes, but most of the time nothing catastrophic results because of genetic diversity —  bad genes are rare, so it is unlikely that two parents have the same problem genes and hence their children won't often inherit two bad copies and suffer the actual disease. Cystic fibrosis is an example: the gene is recessive and 1 in 25 members of the population carry it. However the chance that a baby's parents will both be carriers is only 1 in 625 (1 in 25 x 25) so it is uncommon for children to be born with the disease.

1 in five clumber spaniels is a carrier for PDP1, so there is a 1 in 25 chance of both parents being carriers if breeding pairs are chosen randomly, and this is why health checks are so essential — and are rightly encouraged by the Kennel Club.

However: 1 in five is an astoundingly high frequency for a gene that will make you very ill if you inherit two copies. That kind of frequency would only happen under natural conditions in two possible scenarios.

1. The population size was reduced to a very few individuals at some point and, by chance, some of those individuals happened to be carriers (for example if a few animals were carried to an island on a floating log).
2. Animals with one "bad" and one "good" copy of the gene had some survival advantage; as in the case of human Sickle Cell Anaemia

In Clumbers, the most likely cause is that humans inadvertently caused an artificial analogue of the first option; either because a very small number of dogs were used to create the breed originally, or because at some point a very popular sire happened to be a carrier. 

Independent of the danger that harmful recessive genes may become abnormally frequent if some dogs sire huge numbers of puppies, inbreeding means that both a puppy's parents are likely to carry the same copies of any harmful genes. It doesn't cause bad genes, but it dramatically increases a puppy's chances of inheriting two copies and suffering the actual disease rather than being a carrier.

So - some of the furious argument about cross-bred dogs is actually a red herring, because the need for sophisticated health checks before breeding is, at least partially, an artifact of the abnormal population structure of pedigree dogs.  

The Dogs Trust/Kennel Club Independent enquiry into dog breeding now has a website.

Legal confusion?

Local PCSO [Police Community Support Officer] phoned us asking for clarification of the law on fatal dog attacks on other dogs. This is definitely above my pay grade, so I'm afraid I simply put him on to the NCC, but I subsequently tried Google search to see if I could find more information.

Answer seems to be a very definite "not sure". Woking council say very firmly that this is a civil matter between the dead dog's owner and the owner of the other dog. Hertfordshire council say the owner of the attacked dog can report the incident to either the police or the dog warden for action. DEFRA's leaflet says an offence "may have been committed" if a dog attacks another dog. Bournemouth council say dog attacks should be reported to their Animal Welfare officers.

I'm afraid the answer is probably that this is a policy issue that's decided very locally on the basis of available resources.