Dont own a pet if you can't take care of it!!

I was invited to join a group on facebook where a guy called Ian was moaning about havingto pay £62 to get his dog back. Basically he explains that the dog escaped and he had to pay £62 to get her back.

Firstly I agree £62 is very steep and is a lot of money but one things that concerned me was that this guy said that if it asn't for his daughter getting upset about the dog not being there he would have left the dog in kennels.

Now I agree £62 is a lot of money but I commented saying that to get my dog returned safe, secure I'd pay anything i was told to pay. No amount of money would be too high to get my dog back. I then went on to explain that teher is in my opinion no excuse for leaving your dog in kennels as a responsible owner would have saved money for any eventuality and would try everything toget the dog returned safely.

So what is your opinion on this? if your dog ran away and the council had safely collected it from the streets, kenneled it, fed it, assessed it, ensured it was healthy and checked by a vet etc would you be making a fuss about the fee to return it? A few people have said I am unreasonable to say I agree with the fees as their dog had run away 6 times (surely that says to me that that owner shouldn't have a dog!!!). I personally would go to hell and back, walk on hot coal, die for my dog if he went missing. £62 by any standards is a lot of money but in return for a safe, happy dog I'd pay it without a grumble at all and ensure that next time my dog couldn't or wouldnt escape.

What are your views on this?

Plymouth Council £62.00 payment for return of stray dogs its to expensive | Facebook

 

I would gladly pay £62 to get Barney back safe and sound if he ever went missing. I think it's a no brainer really some people really confuse me.

 

I would pay 10 times that if I had to, but hopefully would never have to

 

£62 is a small amount to pay to have my beloved dog back home where it belongs!!!

 

If one of my dogs went missing I would be devastated and pay anything to get them home again!!!

 

I joined the group because in protest it is very expensive, if both mine got out that would cost me £124 to get them back! I agree though i would pay that if I had to just to get them back, I would not be happy about it though.

I read what the guy put and it is terrible, some people just see them as pets and that's that.

 

I haven't read the link but yes, would pay whatever it took to get my dog back if I was unfortunate enough to lose her. In fact before getting her, I looked seriously into the cost and decided a small dog would suit me best for lots of reasons, cost included.

Years ago when I walked the dogs for our local RSPCA rescue there was gorgeous GSD called who had been found wandering on the Hoe. His owner rang the rescue and said that he wasnt prepared to pay the fine and didnt want him back. Solo was a great character and it was hard to believe anyone could not want him. Altho his passion for the dirtiest of puddles with his long coat wasnt the most endearing of his qualities.

 

I understand it's a lot of money but I would rather have my dog picked up by the council and pay that than have my dog run over and either a) die or b) cost me a lot of money in vet bills.

 

Like I said it is expensive, but someone who loved their dog would pay it and treat it as an expensive lesson. I would learn from that lesson so it didn't happen again. Some people are so irresponsible that they think "oh its Ok the council wil pick up my dog" or "someone will find him and let me know" or "nevermind I'll buy another" - the point I am making is yes its a lot of money but I'dgo hungry for a week just so my dog can be reunited safely. If you can't afford to provide the basic needs for your pet you shouldnt have one!!!

 

If im honest it's allot of money for what they do....which is bugger all! I agree with you guys that i would pay any amount to get my dog back, but at the same time i think thats why they charge such a high amount, because they know we will pay it.

My dog once got out just after id washed her (so she had no collar on.) Turns out the dog warden had picked her up, and they refused to give her back to me until the next day just so they could charge me £55

 

I bet its not expensive if you take in to account the wages of all the staff involves in the care of the dog while in kennels and costs ect.

The dog warden who fetches it (if one does)
Vehicle costs (insurance/fuel)
Food/ Housing (heating/insurance)
Office/ recepetion staff
ect ect
Management ect

It all goes to cover the costs of the service I bet they can provide a break down to where it all goes if asked.

 

As an ex dog warden, I know that the fee charged barely covers the costs of paying a dog warden service and then kenneling a stray dog for up to seven days. I used to actually get people ringing up and then refusing to collect their dog rather than pay the fee! Their dogs then fortunately went to a no-kill (unless absolutely neccessary!) shelter that we used after 24 hours in the holding kennels. Hopefully the next owners valued them more highly. I can recall several owners who regularly allowed their dogs out to stray and would always pay the fee and get them out again! I would go and see them in exasperation to tell them that it would be far cheaper to get their property fenced or at least fence of part of their garden as a secure dog run!

 

Well the kennels my dog went to was a barn, that stank and had no lighting. She wasn't even fed. And the staff....well that was just the woman that owned the house, its a 2 minute walk from my house. The break down was £45 for the over night stay! an the rest was to the council for the dog wardens fee.....£45!!! I thought most kennels charged £9 per night.

Just looking at what caroline put, this place that i talk of (no longer used) used to be where the dogs stayed for a night before being taken to the pound where they then have 7 days.

 

Couldn't agree more. I am sure they incur many costs along the way, and by charging people it teaches responsbility... If I lost Buster and had to pay £62 I'd learn my lesson and watch him carefully in the future!

theres also vet bills as well, if theer is a concern as to the dogs welfare I am sure they check each incoming stray! Transport as well like you say and the burden on a rehoming centre with other dogs to help as well.

 

Not only do I not find it expensive, if it was a dog I saw was wandering around on a number of occasions I'd be tempted to pick it up and take it down there myself just to teach the owner a lesson that they've got to look after their dog - some people shouldn't own dogs

 

the guy is a moron

i commented on one of his comments...

in his words 'the dog was on an adventure'................IDIOT!

 

:skep: Ok he does sound like a tool.

 

Didn't read that bit but yeah, it wouldn't suprise me!

 

Oh and this comment was posted to me... can anyone decipher it?

I am not turning this into a witch-hunt just simply that some people shouldn't have pets and it's these peopel who give us responsibl owners a bad name!!!

 

Ive not read all the replies, but IMO if he cant keep his dog under control then yes he should be made to pay to get it back, maybe he will be more careful!

Here it is £90 if your dog manages to make it to the local kennels.

I think that is fair, considering, you have to call the dog warden out (environmental services there isnt a specific dog guy), who collects the dog and takes it to the police station, where they have to waste time filling out a form and putting the dog into their kennels. Then (*if owner has not called within x hours*) when someone has time they have to waste more police/their own time to drive the dog up to the kennels, who most likely have to juggle their rescue dogs about to accomodate a stray, they are full to the brim anyway. They have to fill out more forms wasting time that could have been spent on the rescues, they have to feed the dog and clean its kennel etc...


where I use to live there were many dogs that were let out to wander the streets, crap on other peoples gardens, cause traffic accidents etc, and yes if I could catch them I did call out the warden and more often than not it taught the owners a lesson! I would NEVER let my dogs escape or just let them on the street its dangerous and stupid.