[Kerriech]

The farmer next door to us, has a bull which is in trouble. It's feet are horrendously long and flat and hasn't moved more than a couple of metres at a time, in 3 weeks. When it does walk it's like a badly laminitic pony. But mostly just lies down, for days at a time. In the last week, I've not seen it on its feet at all, when it does move it walks on its knees for a bit then lies down again.

It hasn't been near water for a few days, that I've seen, and despite the heat, he's brought it one solitary bucket of water.

I'm not a farmer, and am a bit soft, and would like to think that farmers look after their animals. What i saw here over the winter made me really sad, tiny calves up past their bellies in liquid mud, orphaned calves left to fend for themselves stealing a sook when they can........ He's had several visits from SSPCA over the winter, but nothing much has changed.....

My OH spoke to animal health about the bull a week ago, when it was still walking, albeit badly. They've done nothing! And since then it has deteriorated.

What should I do? A friend suggested I just get on with looking after my own animals, and ignore it, but that doesn't feel right. However the authorities don't seem willing to do anything?

Advice??

[Steph Hen]

Do what you think is right. I'm not a big fan of SSPCA, but if there is genuine cruelty then they are the power to go to. They work on a case by case basis, so some muddy calves, or whatever may not be enough to pursue, but that doesn't mean that another case isn't worth reporting. That said, they do seem to ring fence some people (two that I've known of, and won't investigate them further, regardless of how many complaints they get. - I assume this means they've been threatened with harassment? Or if they're already prosecuting, then they can't go after them on other charges or something?)

It's a shame that you don't have a dialogue with your neighbour so you could approach him directly and discuss.
 Your description Sounds dreadful, but I don't know about cattle. Do you have a knowledgable friend who'd give you a second opinion? Is it very underweight? Have you been there the whole time, to know that owner has only been there once, he's not round at 5am everyday? Film the beast hobbling and email it.
My friend had sspca out last year (to the sick looking horses and two dead foals in her field) the foals woke up when sspca arrived, and they and their mothers in peak of good health trotted over to say hello.

[bigchicken]

What was the result of the SSPCA visit.

[Kerriech]

Bigchicken, I appreciate your bluntness. The reason for not going to sspca is that the farmer says -they are a charity and he doesn't have to do what they say - direct quote! Hence the call to animal health. I actually thought they would be more effective.
. I don't know about cattle, and don't know if there could be a reason why animal health would do nothing? Hence my post here.....I am concerned that we end up in a "boy who cried wolf" scenario....... And the authorities in future ignore our calls?

[Thyme]

Are there other neighbouring farmers you could talk to and see what they think about it?  If there's another farmer with a better attitude to animals then they might know best how to intervene tactfully.

[devonlad]

Your original post is depressingly familiar. Although we are not "proper farmers" and as a result do not understand how necessary it is to keep animals in unfit conditions simply because you've got lots of them, I grew up on a farm and work in the agricultural sector, visiting large numbers of farms every week. Even if I didn't do this I don't believe you need to be a "proper farmer" to work out whether an animals existence is acceptable or not. On the plus side, I rarely come across cruel and neglectful farmers in my work, though I am unlucky enough to live next to one !!
Our initial attempts to address the conditions in which his sheep lived in the field next door to ours, introduced me to the toothless nonsense of the RSPCA- "ring us if there's a dead one" was the gist- so I did, 24 hours later and became a parcel around various departments and onto animal health and then their duty vet and so on- total rubbish.
Nowadays we do what we can, and turn a blind eye far more often than we wish. all we really know is that when his sheep are beside us they have a full trough, and are not left jammed in creep feeders or trapped in badly maintained stock fences  till they die. I did once try to speak to the farmer but got nowhere. How could I with 10 sheep understand that 1000 sheep no longer need water to drink, or more than 2 legs to stand on. having spent the previous week filling up the water trough in boiling weather with them practically climbing on each other to get to the water the farmer thanked me but then informed me that sheep don't need water, but if "you give it them of course they'll drink it" bloody lazy idle foul idiot
our neighbour on the other side, with an equally large flock differs in so many ways, troughs are full, sheep can walk. just for starters
not at all helpful im sure but nice to vent- 

[Fleecewife]

The RSPCA and the ScottishSPCA are entirely different bodies.  When our neighbour was shown to be being cruel to his animals he was made, by the SSPCA to give up all livestock, and had to have all animals off his land by the next day.  All apart from his dogs, poor things.  Animal Health had had the situation reported to them  by at least 6 separate individuals, including the local vet - they came round twice, were taken in by his blarney, and nothing was done.  So from that experience, I do respect the SSPCA.

[harmony]

Both the RSPCA and SSPCA have far less powers than people believe. Animal Health should do something and will probably work with the SSPCA.


The problem is that you don't know whether AH have visited, if the animal is under the vet, whether AH are dealing with it but not as quick as you would like.


Ring daily. Ask for an update but don't expect anything to happen overnight because it just won't happen like that.

[landroverroy]

 Given that nothing is likely to happen immediately, but in the meantime the animal is suffering, can you give it some water and hay each day? Hopefully then, if you harrass them daily, either the SSPCA or Animal Health will get off their backsides and do something before it's too late.