why is that better for the dog than a snuggly kennel???
just seems better to a 'human' i guess.

i agree with JB, not everyone will find those hours leaving dogs outside acceptable.

i know it must have been a shock to have a visit from the RSPCA but at least someone is looking out for the dogs, better than turning away and ignoring what they view as being mistreatment and/or cruelty. and it is good that the RSPCA followed up on it.

I hope you can get in touch with them today, or rather that they get in touch with you. It must be so worrying I am glad there are people that report suspected cruelty but I am sad that people feel the need to report others maliciously

I think in an ideal world none of us would want to leave our dogs for the timescales that work often necessitates, however jobs change, houses change, relationships change, incomes change and IMO dogs if looked after and healthy often adapt far better to the changes than the humans!! Although not regularly Ben can be left for 9 and even 10 hours, is that ideal, no, would I change it if I could - yes, a dog walker is not a solution as on these rare instances it is when Stuart is delayed at work and therefore it is short notice.
The OPs dogs have company in the form of each other, have shelter, food, water, and toileting/exercise facilities. Its maybe not the best solution in everyones eyes but it definitely isn't the worst, but then I doubt anyone was saying either of those.
Hope you can get to the bottom of this and that it is just a misunderstanding.

... lots of dogs choose to be outside wether the owner is there or not.....not all dogs want to sit on the sofa and be smothered 24/7

so if the dogs prefered to be outside(if u was there)playing with eachother doing doggy things and having a romp...would you force them to be inside? .

People go on about leaving dogs and almost seem to acuse us that do as loving our dogs less then they do which i find offensive. My dogs are my family and to the best by them we both have to work full time at the moment. I makes sure they get walked, have toys to play with and mental activites to do while we are out, they have each other and the radio is on all day. While we are out they play fight, chew there toys play with there toys and sleep. When we are at home aside from when we play with them or i am doing some trainning they do the same thing. When my OH was working from home the dogs slept, played with each other and there toys. The only difference was he was about in the house rather then being at work. It really didnt make any difference to them other then they had the back door open.

People who dont leave there dogs dont spend every moment interacting with the dogs. So they still do have there own thing and sleep just like ours do.

You know what.......as i'm self employed, I can take Teagan to work all day. (obv i'm not working at the moment).
At work she's with me all day, gets 2 walks by my dogwalker, she meets all my customers, gets treats etc......and she bloody hates it!

She much prefers being on her own at home, asleep on the sofa, and mooching outside if she wants to!

I just want to know what happens when you get the feedback from the RSPCA - what it was all about?

I think the "if you where there " is the crucial point, being around and your dogs spending all day outside of their own choice , is hugely different to a dog being left alone outside for up to 9hrs a day.

As has been shown everyone will have their own views on what is acceptable (no cruelty involved) in the way they keep their dogs.

For me leaving a dog outside on its own for such periods of time, and not being around to keep an eye on them, is unacceptable to me.

It will be interesting to see why the RSPCA has been called, and if it is the above reason, my doubts is the RSPCA will have no further follow up, because as long as the dog shave shelter ./water and look well cared for, they will take no further action.





Not sure how you have gotten that idea!!

Because you chose to leave your dogs outside and I dont , does nto mean I think you are less of a dog owner, we simply have different ideas on how we keep them

I know exactly where the OP is coming from, I'm lucky(being now retired )that my dogs are with me all the time.

During the summer I was at an Obedience show all day-leaving at 5 am & getting back after 7pm. When I got home I found the porch door keyhole cellotaped up & a card & huge note stuck to the door from an RSPCA inspector.

When I rang her-she proceeded to tell me she had had a report that my dogs were being neglected & left & that I had lots of puppies that were also left alot ! She had heard my dogs & puppies barking & crying whilst she was outside & was very concerned-especially as I did not have a breeders licence despite breeding several litters from my bitches every year !

I had to stifle a laugh as I at the time owned 5 dogs & one bitch(who had never had a litter). I asked what breeds was I supposed to be breeding & was told "Collies", Alsatians & King Charles !

I then told her that I own(ed)2 male Border Collies, 1 female BC who I have arranged with my vet to be spayed due to her high hip score after her next season or in August if she hadn't been in season)& 3 male Cavaliers-No GSDs & no female Cavaliers(pointed out my Cavaliers were not King Charles) So how was I managing to breed several litters a year of the breeds she mentioned. Silence !

I also asked her how she had managed to hear my dogs when all of us(except my cats who wer indoors)were over 200 miles away at a obedence show with several 100s of witnesses(especially the ones who were in my class as I was judging)- Silence again !

I also proceeded to tell her that I & several friends were listening to her statements on a speaker phone & as one is my lawyer & another a serving senior police officer-they were very interested in her"allegations"-Silence !

Since then I have taken out a court injunction forbidding her entry to my property unless invited & also have recieved a full apology from her, her immediate boss & the RSPCA-lodged these with my lawyer(who is also a friend !)

As long as dogs have food, water & adequate shelter it is not for others to judge whether or not they should be left as adults(puppies are a different ball game). Many dogs live all their lives in kennels never being allowed indoors at all & yet are perfectly happy & content.

How we choose to keep our dogs is a personal matter & as long as the dogs have a good quality of life

What worries me a little when I read posts like this, is that the OP asks a question, then when its replied to in a different way to 'oh poor you' (after all everyone is perfectly entitled to a different opinion) then the OP replies in such an agressive way I actually wince as Im reading it!

If the boot was on the other foot, and someone was on here, saying 'Im worried about my neighbours dogs' they seem to be left outside a lot, no one is able to pop in during the day as far as I know' then everyone would be baying neglect and saying it was cold, do they have food, company, access to dry WARM areas.

We dont have photographs of the OP's set up, so we have to assume in our heads that our 'image' of good dog care is actually what is happening. I have an (ex) 'friend' who has a boxers, she thought that it was perfectly acceptable to have mattresses, a broken motorbike and some bed springs laying all over her garden. However some people have a centrally heated shed type kennel with a purpose built run that the dogs can retreat to, we dont know how the OP lives. However I would definately not be letting my dogs run loose in the garden all day I just dont feel that they can be looking after adequately like that, we are not talking about newfoundlands, we are talking about thin coated smaller breeds. The op says that the two food bowls are filled twice daily, Im assuming they are outside all the time as well. What about in the hot weather, if they only have a large water bowl, what happens if they knock it over? Or if the dogs start squabbling over something?

Im sorry, but if you are letting your dogs roam around in your garden all day, you dont know if they are barking their heads off, trying to get over the fences, getting soaking wet in the rain, tipping their water bowl over, whining because they are cold or getting too hot and not finding a cool place to go.

If they were inside, you would be able to manage their care better, even the most destructive dog can be cared for more carefully indoors.

Whoever has reported you, has only got the best interests of the dogs at heart, after all if you were worried about an animal, you probably wouldnt think twice about calling in the RSPCA.

Probably an unpopular post, but it just makes me a bit when someone is slated by the OP for having a different opinion. When that opinion is probably what a lot of other people are thinking.