DESPITE investigating 1133 animal cruelty complaints, the ACT RSPCA laid only 11 charges over the 2020/21 year.

“In the ACT we need stronger animal laws, that’s a fact, but the way we look at it, is charging someone always the right way to approach it?”, said RSPCA chief inspector Warwick Dunstan. 

“There’s certain questions we’ll ask someone and we’ll get to the bottom of whether they’re legitimate hard-timers, or whether it’s just that they don’t care, and if they don’t care, that’s when we’ll prosecute.

“If they need help, we will help as far as we can, and we pride ourselves on that. Education and helping is our first approach.”

RSPCA CEO Michelle Robertson said she knew people struggled sometimes as a consequence of mental health and it wasn’t something the community understood well enough.

“It’s hard on all fronts, bringing animals in that are emaciated and flea ridden and matted, it’s awful,” she said.

“Some people hoard animals, and it’s really confronting because your senses get assaulted, there is filth and so you have to wear full personal protection gear.”

However, the RSPCA had developed “emergency accommodation” to help temporarily.

“We have accommodation for pets while someone is going through a crisis. Whether it’s domestic violence, homelessness, mental or physical health, and we’ve started building capacity,” Michelle said.

“Animals are forgotten victims, and there’s more situations occurring.”

In the 2018/19 financial year, Michelle said the RSPCA had only 35 spaces available in its emergency boarding facilities.

“We were then able to double it over the next financial year, and then again in the current financial year,” she said.

“We’ve built spaces where you can still come in and spend time with the pet, and I’m really happy about that.”

Warrick said: “People who do have mental health issues are still people, we do things in a respectful manner and we’re here to help.

“We’re starting to build relationships with people so they can come to us should they need help, and we do see a lot of return customers through the emergency boarding. They feel confident and comfortable to come back to us, and I think that’s important.”

Michelle said she believed that with some mental health issues, people could still do basic things for an animal if it was a conscious decision, and if they’d put the right support networks in place.

“That’s the expectation, that it would be done appropriately, but unfortunately we still see people doing the wrong thing,” she said.

One of the other main issues for the RSPCA was overheating pets in cars, Warrick said.

“We’re sometimes talking about and seeing the same vehicle multiple times. There’s enough literature and advertising out there, people know they shouldn’t do it and they still do,” he said.

“The chances of us finding all this information on our own is very rare, so that’s why we encourage people to call and let us know.

“The only people who have your personal details are the inspectors themselves.

“I don’t see it necessarily as a complaint. I see it as an inquiry, and the most important thing is, if it doesn’t look normal, doesn’t sound normal, give us a call, and we’ll come and assess it.

“The final message is, before you purchase any animal, make sure the animal’s suitable for its environment. 

“Take the time, educate yourself on what will work before you do it, otherwise they end up coming back to the RSPCA or the inspectorate gets involved, and that’s what we’re trying to avoid.”