Whilst the RSPCA remains in the grip of obsessives and extremists it is unlikely to take advice from anyone, however wise and well meaning. It seems especially averse to input from the rural community despite the fact that it could have avoided acres of bad press if it had listened to people in the countryside, rather than lecturing from what it perceives as the moral high-ground. Our advice is very simple: stop doing stupid things. The Society, however, seems institutionally