Reunited: Bearded Collie Unknown

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2011-01-03 12:34 dinkydoodle

Thanks for everyone's explanations - really pleased that these 2 are now safely back at home, let's hope chip details are updated and tags put on collars and thedogs don't wander off again as we don't want this scenario repeated.

2011-01-03 12:21 Dilys

OK everyone. I was the person who took the dogs to the Halfway Home rescue centre and have only just found out about all this going on! Before I start to put the facts straight, I'll just let you all know that the dogs were in fact reunited with their owner yesterday. He paid the £152 fee which Newark and Sherwood District Council demand. That is £70 per dog for the first day, then £6 per dog per day thereafter. The £176 quoted at first was a mistake. When I found the dogs wandering in the centre of Newark at 10.45pm on New Years Eve, I rang the police, who told me to let them go because there was no dog warden on duty, and the police have nowhere to keep stray dogs. I knew of the Halfway Home rescue centre in Collingham, so tried to take them there, but of course it was locked up for the night, so I took them to a friend to put them in his garage overnight because I could not keep them at my home. I then took them to the Halfway Home rescue centre the next morning. Val, who runs the centre, explained that she acts as a holding centre for the council when the dog warden is not on duty, and therefore has to log the dogs in, and the owner then has to pay the fee to the council to get the dogs back. She tried very hard to locate the owner before logging the dogs in, so that if possible I could take the dogs back to the owner. Unfortunately, only one of the dogs was microchipped, and registered to an owner in Nottingham, who it turned out later was the previous owner - the microchip details had not been updated when the dog went to its current owner in Newark. Only one of the dogs had a collar, and there was no tag to give any details of the owner. It was therefore impossible to find the owner. One kind lady rang from Newark to say that she thought they sounded like some dogs who lived near her, but when I called there to show her a photo, she confirmed that they were not the same dogs. Val at the rescue centre spent a lot of time trying to find the owner, who was only found eventually when the previous owner returned the message which was left for him and explained that the dog had a new owner now. The new owner was eventually located via the RSPCA, from whom he had obtained the dog. I think it has been very unfair of everyone to criticise the Halfway Home, when Val does a great job looking after lots of dogs - I was very impressed with the kennels when I went there - each dog has a run, with toys and bones, as well as a sleeping area with a heat lamp. Also, just to put another matter straight - I certainly did not offer to take the dogs home myself, as I could not keep them at my house. All this just shows really the importance of dog owners ensuring that microchip details are kept up to date, and that their dogs have collars on them with tags with a contact phone no. Apparently the owner said that the dogs regularly wander off and they should have been left to find their way home. However, I didn't know this, and they were actually over a mile away from home, looking very lost and disorientated, and there were going to be fireworks, which would have frightened them, so I couldn't just leave them. Anyway, it's all ended happily because they are home now!

2011-01-03 12:16 AlisonH

So pleased these dogs are back with their owner. Please can we let it drop now both Val and I have apologised to each other.

2011-01-03 12:01 gingernuts mum

If you check on the alsation that was found with this beardie, you will see these dogs are now back with their owner, thankfully. Dilys, the finder has posted on there and I say she did well finding and re uniting these dogs. Important message here was reminding owners to update details on microchips. As for halfway house...her comments were way out of order and she should keep in mind us, i quote ''do gooders' help many owners reunite with their MISSING pets....not all dogs found are abandoned. Now lets all get on with our good work. These dogs are now with their owners, which is what we all aim for. Well done all concerned.

2011-01-03 11:55 AlisonH

We do not have the contact details for the owners. Only Val at Halfway home knows who they are. Please feel free to call her on 0780-8003152

Natalie don't worry about the comments, we've all got broad shoulders.

Last edited: 2011-01-03 11:57:18 by AlisonH

2011-01-03 10:42 Jendie

Can someone please give me a contact for the owners? Beardie Rescue will pay the cost of reclaiming the Beardie and we need to act quickly to stop the bill increasing!!

2011-01-03 10:24 natalie

Most stray boarding kennels charge around £25 mandatory fine and the price of kennels is then around £5-£6 per day. I realise it may be the council and not halfway house that have made these costs up of £150 but surely something needs to be looked into, as surely they cannot charge £30 at one kennel and £150 at another, especially when all they did was scan for a microchip and there was somebody there who was willing to return the dogs to their owner.
I also think it is very inappropriate calling the people who spend every spare second they have trying to reunite dogs with their owners 'do gooders'. The people who run this site and all the helpers and volunteers who go out of their way to look for dogs, poster and search endlessly are tireless in what they do and i for one don't think these comments should have been made.
Surely if a dog already has an owner they would be better being reunited with them rather than rehoming them to a home where a very needy dog could be placed, one who actually has no owners. I have nothing to say in regards to the 2 dogs' owner as i don't know whether they are trying hard to find the release fee but i would hope they are doing anything in their power. Natalie

2011-01-03 10:16 AlisonH

I have emailed Halfway home and apologised as it is the council who set the fees and I will be speaking to them. My email to Halfway Home and her 3 replies will be forwarded to the council along with my concerns about the high cost release fees. Can we please now get back to what we do best.

2011-01-03 09:13 jobadger

If the finder of the dogs was willing to return them to the owner - why did the council have to become involved? A fee could have been paid to the kennels for the service rendered - i.e. checking the microchip - and the dogs would have been well home by now. Couldn't common sense have prevailed - and perhaps compassion???
'If the owners cant afford to get their dogs back they shouldnt let them stray in the 1st place'. How patronising!!
I for one would be prepared to offer a donation towards the costs of returning these dogs to their owner.

Last edited: 2011-01-03 09:28:07 by jobadger

2011-01-03 00:15 ESSJ - Area Co-ordinator Rutland

I do believe that more could be done to reunite these two and tbh the comment that dogs should not be allowed to stray in the first place is an odd one- we all know and wish this didnt happen.All i can say is that i think these charges could have been avoided - as WW says the finder was willing to take the dogs to the owners themselves.If the council charges that then there is nothing more i can say other than what has been said above.
I do however have issues with us being called do-gooders who do nothing.I for one put a lot of hours into physically helping as well as crossmatching and phoning/contacting distraught owners.(i have just returned from looking for Violet Id=26373. I own my own business but do this as a volunteer in my own time. i actively help "pull" dogs from pounds and transport to safety as do many other of our volunteers and co-ords as well as fundraising for various rescues.i am currently fostering just such a dog and i dont ask for congratulations for that. We all help because we care about the dogs and their owners and we do it for free.

2011-01-03 00:10 wirral groomer

I think this is a tough one . I personnally would gladly pay a kennels to get my dogs back safe and sound . And I'm a bit concerned if the owners can't pay this what would they do if one of there dogs needed vetinary treatment would they just leave them there too !! I would beg and borrow for my dogs and would just be so relieved they where safe . But do agree £150 is very very steep to go to a council not even to help other list dogs . We are looking for smith the westie and would be more the happy to pay the £1000 reward to have him safely home . But I also unfortunately know people who think dogs are disposable yet still own them . If the owners love there dogs I'm sure some arrangement could be made does the charge go up day by day .

2011-01-02 23:48 wickedweims

I am not getting into a slanging match with halfway house but you receive a large amount of grant to help your recue and as the dog warden did not ickuthe dog and the finder stayed at your kennel for 2 hours willing to take the dogs back tothere ownertheonly cost you incurred wa to scan the dogs
and we also have a member on here who have rehomed a thai ridgeback bitch from you at a huge cost 200plus only to find that the dog was pregnant after being told it had been spayed
we just want a breakdown of how these cots have occured

2011-01-02 23:37 DogLostMajorjet (Jan) - Area Co-ordinator - Liverpool/Merseyside, North West

Ashmark, I have emailed you some advice on this which includes charges in the area. I know in my area and other areas the charges can differ a lot depending which Council the dog has been found and who has picked it up. Jan x

2011-01-02 23:34 Halfway Home

I have just joined to post my cooment. I have emailed Alison telling her to get her facts straight. I run my rescue kennels very succesfully and have saved well over 2000 dogs from death at least. I have the out of hours stray contract for Newark and Sherwood as I was concerned nobody wants to be bothered with stray dogs once the council finish work. I do not make the charge to the owner the council do and the fee was £152. Maybe before you do gooders get off you computers and actually do something to help the plight of death row dogs in this country less of them may die.
Maybe you should petition councils about the charges as its them that set them. If the owners cant afford to get their dogs back they shouldnt let them stray in the 1st place. I am awaiting an apology from the co-ordinator as she should have phoned me before running me down on here. Maybe you would all like to send some money to my vets to cover the £44.000 bill I spent on stray dogs last yearlet alone looking after them until new homes could be found

2011-01-02 23:06 AlisonH

Can you all please bear with me. I do not know who the owner of these 2 dogs is as I only have contact number for the finder. As yet I am not able to speak to the council involved as everyone is on holiday until Tuesday but as soon as I know anything I will let you all know. In the meantime if anybody local to newark hears anything that would be helpful please email admin@doglost.co.uk.

2011-01-02 22:45 dinkydoodle

Just logged on and was thinking great, these 2 dogs are now safely back at home but......I am lost for words reading the posts below and echo these sentiments exactly. Are these council run kennels i.e the stray pound? If they are (an even if they are not) the council needs to be informed of the stand this kennel has taken. Thanks Ashmark for following up (personally) and I hope the owner does aswell - please keep us posted.

2011-01-02 21:41 jobadger

Thank you.

2011-01-02 21:04 DogLostAngus

jobadger - email received and forwarded to coordinator x

2011-01-02 20:42 ML

This is terrible. Rescues are bursting at the seems at the moment and these two dogs already have a home so let them go home and give the space to 2 more dogs that really need it. £176 is a lot of money for anyone to find!
Ashmark please keep us updated as to how you get on with the kennels and if there is anything the rest of us can do. I so hope that they can be reunited with their owners. Is anyone in contact with owners?

Last edited: 2011-01-02 20:42:37 by ML

2011-01-02 20:37 DogLostAngus

jobadger if you email to admin@dogost.co.uk and put FAO the coordinator you require I will make sure that it is forwarded for you

2011-01-02 20:31 jobadger

How do I contact the area co-ordinator please?

2011-01-02 19:38 natalie

I really hope you can get to the bottom of this, i just don't understand how they can justify charging £176 to do nothing but board the 2 dogs for 2 days and a dog warden was not even contacted. And when owners told them they could not afford that amount i cannot believe exceptions were made, especially with the amount of genuinely unwanted dogs being PTS because nobody wants them, who should be the ones getting new homes, not the poor dogs who have owners who want them! As i said i really hope somebody can get to the bottom of this and these 2 can be back with their, presumably, upset owners.

2011-01-02 18:32 ESSJ - Area Co-ordinator Rutland

Thank you Ashmark, my feelings as well are my own personal feelings-again not representing doglost. i hope that you get a satisfactory reply and indeed outcome - then hopefully the dogs can go home and other dogs that need rescue space and rehoming more can be helped instead.

2011-01-02 18:14 AlisonH

I have emailed the kennels and asked for an explanation and am awaiting a reply. If I don't get a satisfactory answer I will be contacting the local council. Can I just make it very clear THAT I AM PERSUING THIS MATTER AS A PRIVATE CITIZEN AND NOT AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF DOGLOST.

2011-01-02 17:52 ESSJ - Area Co-ordinator Rutland

Well I for one am disgusted! Does the dog warden not HAVE to be informed legally in any case? Anyone could have picked these dogs up and they would have had to BY LAW informed the dog warden or be subject to "theft by finding" .Why is this any different and why are they allowed to charge to reunite the dogs(other than obvious and sensible boarding costs).I know of Rescue kennels that take care of dogs in emergency boarding that only charge £4-6 a day! I too hope the owners do not leave it at this.Edited to say that Halfway Home has confirmed it Is the holding kennels for strays so this point has been clarified and understood.

Last edited: 2011-01-03 00:32:26 by ESSJ - Area Co-ordinator Rutland

2011-01-02 17:49 Jendie

I'm pretty sure Beardie rescue would help or at least loan the money. Is anyone in contact with the owners?

2011-01-02 17:49 Jendie

I'm pretty sure Beardie rescue would help or at least loan the money. Is anyone in contact with the owners?

2011-01-02 17:34 AlisonH

Dogs have been moved to re-united page because we know where they are but no they are not back with the owner.

2011-01-02 17:28 Jendie

Have these dogs been reunited now? I heard that the owner couldn't afford the release fee....

2011-01-02 17:26 Lisa123

I paid something around this amount when I boarded my 2 dogs when I went on holiday and that was for 12 nights??? It says on their website they are only a small rescue and are dedicated to helping stray and death row dogs... yeah right! My Grandad lost his dog a few years ago and he was picked up by the dog warden and taken to a kennels but he was just asked for a donation which he gladly paid.

2011-01-02 16:16 AlisonH

The kennels are a rescue kennels so dogs will be put up for rehoming. Usually the release fees include a payment for the dog wardens time and a fine for allowing the dogs to stray but no dog warden was involved as the finder took them to the kennels and the owner was contacted in less than 48 hours. I don't have any idea who the owner of the dogs is but I hope they are not just going to let this go.

2011-01-02 15:50 gingernuts mum

omg...even kennels are trying to rip off dog owners.! Surely with these dogs both being found, the kennels would have a bit compassion??!! 2 days heating and food would not amount to £176....I'm glad you have named and shamed the kennels ...stop any other dog owner using them in the future. I understand its business, but it;s excessive, esp in the circumstances....I thought owners of kennels were dog lovers....not robbers! I pray the owners find the money asap... out of curiosity....what will the kennels do if the owners can,t pay....dump the dogs???!!! C,mon Halfway home......have a heart .

2011-01-02 15:25 natalie

most places only charge about £40 for 2 days, why is it so expensive? Surely if the kennels know the owner cannot pay they will come to some arrangement?

2011-01-02 11:24 AlisonH

Just had a message to say the owner of the 2 dogs has been found but Halfway Home rescue kennels want £176 release fee for 2 days. Owner cannot afford to pay so the dogs are staying at the kennels

Last edited: 2011-01-02 11:28:03 by AlisonH

2011-01-01 21:32 dinkydoodle

Glad the finder did not take the advice of the police, well done finder for doing the right thing. Hope these guys have owners looking for them.

2011-01-01 12:59 wickedweims

the old english is chipped as a bearded collie not a OES

2011-01-01 12:58 wickedweims

it seems that the owners may have been found will update
they have now been tken to halfway rescue to have there chip checked

2011-01-01 10:08 AlisonH

Both dogs are friendly and well behaved. Not been able to get hold of dog warden. Police advised finder to let them both go.