A CLAIM by the Nowra RSPCA that two dogs in its care had found homes when in fact they had been put down has upset animal advocates.

At least two of those dogs had been euthanased by the RSPCA, bringing into doubt the organisation’s claims of the number of animals it adopts out.

The Facebook issue was raised by Tony Twining, a volunteer with the Nowra branch of the RSPCA shelter between February and May this year.

Mr Twining said the two dogs that he knew about, Reg and Max, had been put down in May.

“When the RSPCA published this on Facebook saying these dogs had found their forever homes they knew those two dogs were dead,” Mr Twining said.

“I’m upset that I’m in that photo, it’s quite offensive, I feel like I’m complicit in that lie.

“I am also concerned that it is still on their Facebook page.

“RSPCA NSW CEO Steve Coleman claims to have investigated the issue but the page is still there,” Mr Twining said.

The Register contacted Mr Coleman who confirmed that photo did appear on the RSPCA Facebook page but believed it had been taken down.

“I understand where he [Mr Twining] was coming from,” he said.

“He’s obviously annoyed we’ve misled people. Some days later one of those dogs had been euthanased. It was never the intent to mislead or misrepresent anything at the time when that photo and caption went up.

Lawyers for Companion Animals principal Anne Greenaway is an animal welfare campaigner who believes the organisation is more concerned with making money than animal welfare.

“This is not the first report I am aware of that the NSW RSPCA has stated that an animal has found a home when in fact the animal has been killed,” Ms Greenaway said.

“RSPCA counselled Tony Twining on his comments on a Facebook page, yet they did not and still have not removed their false comments on that same Facebook page, despite being fully aware that the comments were false.”

LAWYER for Companion Animals Anne Greenaway has put forward a challenge to debate the NSW RSPCA CEO Steve Coleman on television about the statistics within the RSPCA report for 2011.

The lawyer wants to challenge the medical and behavioural reasons for the excessive animal killings occurring daily within the state.

Ms Greenaway is calling for the RSPCA to make the temperament test or behavioural assessment, available to the public.

“I fail to understand how open admission council pounds working with community rescue groups have kill rates under 20 per cent,” she said.

“Yet the RSPCA kill rate is over 50 per cent for cats and dogs combined.”

Ms Greenaway believes the RSPCA may be “engaging in misleading and deceptive conduct with some of the claims they make”.

“I am aware of people who have complained to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission alleging the RSPCA has engaged in misleading conduct,” she said.

Ms Greenaway recently provided information to SBS program Insight, for an episode aired last week which highlighted kill rates occurring in council pounds and shelters around Australia.

The lawyer hoped the show would make the public more aware of the large numbers of companion animals being killed each year.

“I think the RSPCA also needs to be more transparent with the rescue groups they work with and I would like to know how many animals they released to rescue groups last year.”

The RSPCA have agreed the amount of companion animals being killed each year in Australia is “appalling.”

An RSPCA spokesperson said while figures may appear high, “at a closer glance of 4862 dogs euthanised by the RSPCA in the last financial year, 62 per cent were put down due to behavioural problems and and 35 per cent because of disease and medical conditions”.

RSPCA NSW CEO Steve Coleman said, “Because of our open door policy, we take in animals that are sick, injured, abused, neglected and unwanted.”

“A number of these animals are deemed dangerous or downright cruel to be kept alive,” he said.

“As a result our staff make the difficult decision to euthanise animals on a daily basis.”

http://www.dailyliberal.com.au/story/370058/state-debate-proposed-for-rspca-on-animal-kill-rates/?cs=112

Companion Animal lawyer Anne Greenaway’s challenge to a televised debate has not been answered by RSPCA chief executive officer Steve Coleman yet.

The Daily Liberal contacted Mr Coleman’s office Tuesday and was informed he was on leave and unable to make a comment.

Ms Greenaway’s challenge has been meet with mixed emotions by readers who have expressed their varied opinions on the Daily Liberal website.

A recent poll on the website indicated 94.2 per cent of readers were in favour of Steve Coleman answering allegations of engaging in “misleading and deceptive conduct”.

The debate continues three days later in the comment section under the October 2 story, State debate proposed for RSPCA on Animal Kill Rates.

http://www.dailyliberal.com.au/story/379491/challenge-to-rspca-goes-unanswered/?cs=112