RSPCA Bradford's animal magic

Although these animals don’t seem ‘lucky’, they are because they’ve finally escaped the life of abuse and neglect which brought them to the RSPCA.

The re-homing of rescued animals is something staff here strive for. When I arrived at the RSPCA’s Mount Street branch in Bradford, a family were arranging to meet a prospective pet. Another happy ending.

This operation – in a low-deck building housing offices and adjoining clinic offering subsidised treatment for pets belonging to people on benefits – is perfectly placed to meet the needs of animals who have found sanctuary here.

During my visit Oly, a rescued barn owl, shyly shunned an appearance, staying concealed behind his screen. A cat with a bandaged leg mustered an appreciative meow to staff delivering medication.

Spooning cat food into dishes lined up ready to distribute, the young woman doing the teatime round in the cats’ maternity home says the cute kitten making for the window we’re peering through has been adopted by a cat busily feeding her kittens.

Dealing with animal adversity can be emotionally challenging, yet the positive vibe within this place symbolises hope.

Seeing rabbits padding about in their pens, dogs greeting guests with a friendly bark, and birds strutting in their cages gives peace of mind that whatever circumstances led them here, the animals are well cared for once they’re here.

Terry Singh’s passion for animal welfare prompted him to come out of retirement and take a post as general manager of the RSPCA’s Bradford and District branch.

He says the rise in animal cruelty in the region over recent years has led to demand being placed on animal centres, placing even more importance on fundraising.

A spring fair, held recently, will contribute to the costs of future improvements, but, as Terry explains, the charity still relies greatly on donations, benefactors and legacies.

Terry would like to hear from businesses and organisations which can offer their services, or volunteers with practical skills, to help spruce up the centre.

So passionate is Terry about the project to refurbish and upgrade the branch, it has brought him out of retirement. After taking redundancy from Bradford Council, he considered how he could make use of the expertise he built during his 43-year career as a dog warden.

The role of RSPCA general manager has taken Terry back to where it all began as a 14-year-old kennel boy. No wonder he appeared at home strolling the corridors where Harry and Tigs, belonging to staff member Paula Newsome, lazed contentedly in her office.

For Terry it is familiar territory. “About 1977, I came here doing voluntary work at the age of 14. Then I was offered a job as a kennel assistant. I became a supervisor, then ambulance driver, assistant manager, relief manager then I was the RSPCA animal centre manager. I was 11-and-a-half years at the RSPCA,” he recalls.

Terry left the centre to work with Bradford Council which was developing a new dog warden service which would become nationally recognised for training and advising more than 300 local authorities.

Due to restructuring within the service, Terry was offered voluntary redundancy, but his retirement was brief. “I have a passion to work with animals and help them,” he says.

His aim is to raise the RSPCA Bradford branch’s profile and also develop the Mount Street site through a range of initiatives.

The branch is supported by charity shops in Bradford, Cleckheaton, Otley and Pudsey and is also launching a new used furniture facility called Unit 5. The shop will offer quality used furniture, which the charity hopes the public will donate.

Bradford is one of two designated RSPCA centres in Yorkshire with trained staff to rehabilitate and release wildlife back into the wild. Terry talks enthusiastically of plans to upgrade those facilities.

Refurbishments to a kennel block and the creation of a new mother and kittens family unit are currently ongoing. The £40,000 cost is being met by public donations and the RSPCA headquarters in Horsham.

Funding is as essential to the RSPCA’s survival as volunteers and the staff are. Terry praises his motivated and dedicated team who are nursing pets, such as Noodle, back to health. The three-legged kitten, found hiding under a car, had to have her badly damaged front leg amputated.

They also work closely with the charity’s inspectors caring for animals which have been victims of abuse, neglect or abandonment.

Terry says the recession has had an impact, with people bringing in pets they can no longer afford to keep.

“We can anticipate demand is growing due to people’s hardship and because of the economy,” he says.

The branch is already reducing taking animals in directly from the public for rehoming to ensure it can accommodate ‘at risk’ animals brought in by its inspectors.

“Due to pressures already on the home, we are seeing an increase in activity from our RSPCA inspectors wanting accommodation,” says Terry.

“The message we want to get out there is seriously consider before you take an animal on. You are responsible for the life of that animal, it’s not just temporary.”

Terry also stresses the importance of neutering and micro-chipping, which the charity is promoting through its involvement with organisations such as Dogs Trust and the Cats Protection League.

Terry is relishing the challenge of returning to where his career began. Soon to celebrate his 60th birthday, he says with a smile: “There is still life in the old dog!”

Jan Robertshaw, branch vice president and chairman of the board of trustees at the RSPCA in Bradford, says the trustees were pleased to welcome Terry on board.

“His managerial experience and extensive knowledge of animal welfare issues made him the ideal candidate to help the trustees and staff take the branch forward successfully into the future,” she said.

For more information, contact (01274) 723063; e-mail info@rspca-bradford.org.uk or visit rspca-bradford.org,uk. If you have any unwanted furniture to donate to the charity’s furniture outlet call 07508 422175.