UNBELIEVABLE! That’s what we think of some of the adverse comments posted on our FB page concerning the situation with horses in Enniscorthy yesterday. People like our Inspector and members of SEAR that were actually at the scene all day knew that it was physically impossible to rescue the animals given the conditions of the river and it was heartbreaking for them to have to stand and watch the drama unfold and not being able to do anything to help these animals. In the case of a rescue like this we have to weigh up the cost of human life against animal life, we didnt want anyone to be injured or worse still to drown whilst involved in the rescue. Our phone never stopped the whole day yesterday with people ringing in concerned about the welfare of the animals and to see if they could help in any way, but in a situation like this it is better to leave it in the capable hands of Slaney S&R as they have been trained how to deal safely with situations like this and we can’t thank them enough for their help and support yesterday. We apologise if people couldnt get through to our office by phone but the phone was rarely on the hook due to the huge volume of calls answered, I personally know that all calls where answered in a polite, respectful manner and to say otherwise is ridiculous. As regards to getting the Fire Service involved, they wouldnt physically have been able to get any closer with their vehicles then we were ourselves and the only way they could have taken the horses from the river was to have dragged them up the banks with ropes, providing that you could get ropes on them in the first place. Another suggestion was the Coast Guard Helicopter to airlift the animals one by one to safety, obviously that caller had no understanding of the complexity of the situation or even the fact that the noise alone of the Helicopter overhead would have completely spooked already distressed animals and the outcome may not have been as good as it was. And yes unfortunately cost does come into the equation, these animals were not strays they all had owners so why anyone would expect a Charity run by volunteers to bear the cost of rescuing their animals and them to get away scot free beggars belief. On the subject of money as previously stated our Society (WSPCA not ISPCA) is run completely by volunteers who don’t even put in for expenses and yes we do receive a grant for The Dept of Agri and yes it was €39,200 last year but to put that into context our kenneling bill for last year for cats & dogs was €41396 and our vet bill was for €44211 and that’s just our main veterinary practice, over the year weve had to use other vets local to the area we were in and they have to be paid as well, so you wouldnt have to be a genius to see that our grant (which we are so grateful for) only covers roughly the first quarter of the year and that’s without any other day to day working expenses. We are lucky here in Wexford with the donations we receive from the public but the most of our money is raised through fundraisers that we hold over the year and of course our Charity Shop which has indeed been a lifesaver for us, generating a much needed income to allow us to continue in our work, rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming the countless animals that come into our care. If anyone would like to see a copy of our accounts they are available in our office. We would ask people to ring in first to see if it’s convenient to come in at a certain time, but usually we can accommodate them on Monday, Thursday or Fridays when a member of our Board would be available to answer any questions you would have. Once again we would like to thank all involved in the rescue yesterday
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 13:51:52 +0000
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