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Monday, 2 January 2012




The RSPCA reveals its strangest calls from 2011

A miraculous tortoise recovery and a stubborn ornamental hedgehog are amongst some of the stranger requests that the RSPCA has been asked to deal with in 2011.

The RSPCA have had one of their busiest years to date, dealing with well over a million phone calls and more than 14,000 online enquiries.

These range from asking for help and advice for their own pet to reporting cruelty and neglect and requesting that the RSPCA look into the matter.

Whilst the majority of enquiries are genuine there are a few that left staff somewhat puzzled. So here, in no particular order, are their top ten calls of 2011.

— A caller rang to complain that a neighbour’s power shower caused their dog to go to the toilet.

— A concerned resident who thought gulls were in their area were radioactive – it turned out that nearby garden lights were illuminating them and turning them green.

— A lady phoned in to complain that the blackbird in her garden didn’t sing.

— We had call from someone who wanted to complain about someone else’s dirty house. An odd call to the RSPCA because there were no animals involved.

— One caller rang to cancel a visit as their dead tortoise had ‘come back to life’.

— Another caller rang in concerned about the talking meerkats on the Compare the Market advertisement.

— A caller requested the RSPCA to come and get their dog down the stairs as it was too heavy for them to carry.

— One caller rang concerned about a hedgehog on their path. She tried to move it to shelter but was not able to pick up the creature because its suction pad was too firmly attached to the floor.

— Someone asked if they could get advice on microchipping...their guitar.

— Finally an inspector was called out to deal with a report of improper killing of ferrets dumped in a bag. On arrival the inspector found a fake mink stole.

Although we may have a little laugh at these stories, the RSPCA does want to remind members of the public that the 24-hour advice and cruelty line is for reporting serious cases or emergencies concerning animal welfare.

Many requests are for animals to be rescued or to report animals involved in accidents.

The cruelty and advice line operates in a very similar way to the 999 emergency services number and non-urgent calls could prevent us from dealing with a serious incident.

People with general enquiries about the RSPCA should call our non-emergency enquiries line on 0300 123 4555. Further advice and information on animal care can be found on our website www.rspca.org.uk





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17 Comments


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  • Crystal- (Age 13) wrote on Thursday, 22 December 2011 @ 14:51

    LoL

  • Bunnycat (Age 13) wrote on Thursday, 22 December 2011 @ 15:04

    it just shows how daft some people can be.

  • Tabbycat16 (Age 11) wrote on Thursday, 22 December 2011 @ 15:11

    I think these stories are really funny, but I do think the RSPCA should only be called in serious cases.

  • charan (Age 13) wrote on Friday, 23 December 2011 @ 14:07

    lol

  • sambarose2 (Age 11) wrote on Friday, 23 December 2011 @ 16:13

    LOL, but people shouldn't call in for things like 'micro chipping you guitar' or anything, because it prevents them them from taking serious calls...

  • 09AhmedA (Age 13) wrote on Saturday, 24 December 2011 @ 20:30

    Ahaha lool

  • shoeless27 (Age 10) wrote on Tuesday, 27 December 2011 @ 18:47

    lol! dont get ideas though, because they might have a fake call, while an animal is in desperate danger.

  • Blaazin (Age 11) wrote on Wednesday, 28 December 2011 @ 22:08

    Some of these people just joke about it what idiots!

  • Blaazin (Age 11) wrote on Wednesday, 28 December 2011 @ 22:09

    Lol what idiots!

  • Blaazin (Age 11) wrote on Wednesday, 28 December 2011 @ 22:09

    Lol

  • sweetcandy (Age 10) wrote on Thursday, 29 December 2011 @ 16:59

    LOL!

  • pickers (Age 10) wrote on Monday, 2 January 2012 @ 19:18

    LOL THAT IS CRAZY. WHO WOULD SAY THINGS LIKE THAT.

  • brucie52 (Age 8) wrote on Tuesday, 3 January 2012 @ 09:01

    that is alot of things they have to deal with.

  • brucie52 (Age 8) wrote on Tuesday, 3 January 2012 @ 09:01

    lol

  • brucie52 (Age 8) wrote on Tuesday, 3 January 2012 @ 09:02

    lol

  • mim1 (Age 7) wrote on Tuesday, 3 January 2012 @ 09:31

    Those stories are funny.People can have a good laugh about them but do those people realise all those animals the RSPCA could be rescuing or giving advice to pet owners. My school had an RSPCA day because I saw the appeal for the RSPCA animal hospital and so did my friend so we told the headteacher and told her.So the whole school came in blue and white . Everyone took in a stuffed animal.My blue cat that I have had since before I was 1 year old is the toy I took in .I watched a show and a dog had barbed wire all around him or her and it had really cut into the dogs skin.That is a serious call

  • octopus77 (Age 12) wrote on Wednesday, 4 January 2012 @ 15:13

    wow the hedge hog had a suckre for goodnesssake that should be a dead give away tht it is not a REAL hedgehog lol