Former animal haven volunteer hits out at owner (From Swindon Advertiser)

If you spoke to the hundreds of volunteers that have helped John over many years, you would find these accusations grossly unfair. It is impossible to save every animal that is ill. If these claims were true loads of people would have spoken out.
Most of John's work goes unnoticed..that is caring for and re homing animals that have been cruelly treated and are unwanted.
The Adver has reported on many occasions the good work John and his volunteers do. Not many would turn out in the small hours to rescue birds stuck up chimneys or foxes caught in wires. John even helped a family who had a fox in their house, he then took the fox to the vets for treatment of an injury.
If there were more people like John Warwick in this world,it would be a better place.
He is thought so highly of amoung the volunteers that they are still fundraising and holding tabletop sales to try to help their friend pay the huge and unjust fine that this council through their actions have imposed on him.
Good Luck John, there are so many people behind you and you have loads of support.

does this guy have any proof and if so why wasnt his concerns brought to light when the alleged incidents took place. With the number of volunteers surely someone else would have noticed..... or is this his 5 mins of fame and kicking a good man when he is down!!!!!! John and the Haven will rise again as we will make sure of it.... it will be better than before!!!!!!!!!!

Well done Mr Dunn for speaking out.

Warwick was prosecuted and pleaded guilty to several counts of cruelty; there was no misunderstanding he was prosecuted for cruelty.

There should be no excuses for long term neglect & cruelty and thankfully the courts and people that know cruelty when they see it have not accepted it either.

Grossly unfair? Sound spot on to me. I'm sure it was mentioned in one of the earlier court cases that he burnt the corpses of some animals.
Let's look at the facts: he's been given multiple warnings and notices by the RSPCA over the years, he was prosecuted by Swindon Council and the Fire Brigade for not complying with legislation and he was banned from keeping animals for cruelty and neglect. Why are people still sticking up for this man?
And why are you collecting to pay his fine?! He was fined because he neglected his animals to such an extent that they died - that was proven in court. I don't understand how that's unjust. The recent case wasn't an isolated incident either - as proved by all the previous warnings. And there was the time all his goats had to be destroyed because he fed them dog food.
it's just as Mr Dunn says, John doesn't like people giving him advice even when what he's doing is wrong. It's always "it'll be alright". Bravo to Mr Dunn in coming forward. As for saying "if these claims were true loads of people would have spoken out" - they have, they've reported him to the RSPCA and council many times and that's why he's been BANNED due to cruelty and neglect.
And thank you adver for finally printing a decent story rather than the usual sympathetic rubbish. Its long overdue but appreciated.

so Rebo and Redfoxy apart from hiding behind silly names you have both been to the Haven recently and saw for yourselves how much work has been done and continues to be done. Have you actually asked John what went on or do you just believe what you have read or been told by a friend of a friends friend. The court have had their say but have also set a precedent in their ruling to..... but you wont find out about that because it wasnt published just like a lot of other things because they werent juicy enough for the press.. oh well you believe the hype and we'll listen to the true facts.. all of them

It was just a matter of time before Redfoxy crawled out of the woodwork..been spouting the same old poison for years.
As for Rebo.. It might help if you got some of the facts right, it is obvious you haven't been anywhere near the Haven and have no understanding of the place or how it operates.
You don't seriously think people would volunteer and help there if animal cruelty was taking place do you??

alanmc wrote:
so Rebo and Redfoxy apart from hiding behind silly names you have both been to the Haven recently and saw for yourselves how much work has been done and continues to be done. Have you actually asked John what went on or do you just believe what you have read or been told by a friend of a friends friend. The court have had their say but have also set a precedent in their ruling to..... but you wont find out about that because it wasnt published just like a lot of other things because they werent juicy enough for the press.. oh well you believe the hype and we'll listen to the true facts.. all of them

What wasn't published? What do you believe to be the true facts? This is what was in the actual court case:

http://www.swindonad
vertiser.co.uk/archi
ve/2011/12/09/Wootto
nbassett+News+%28woo
ttonbassett_news%29/
9412132.Man_banned_f
rom_keeping_farm_ani
mals_for_10_years/

And yes I have been there in the last year as well as previously... No I'm not going to put my name on a public forum... I'll stick to facts as proven in court - and admitted to by Mr Warwick by the way.

redfoxy wrote:
Well done Mr Dunn for speaking out.

Warwick was prosecuted and pleaded guilty to several counts of cruelty; there was no misunderstanding he was prosecuted for cruelty.

There should be no excuses for long term neglect & cruelty and thankfully the courts and people that know cruelty when they see it have not accepted it either.

And don't see how this is poison? Just stating the facts.

There's plenty of stories I could tell but you'll deny that they ever happened so that's why I'll stick to evidence as proven in court.

The charge that John admitted to was not cruelty..It referred to his pet pigs who were so well loved, he overlooked the fact that they were very old and lame and had reached the end of there lives.
He admitted that yes, he was wrong not to have recognised this.
The other points you have raised regarding goats being fed dog food and animal corpses being burned are pure fiction.

Clarwilt wrote:
The charge that John admitted to was not cruelty..It referred to his pet pigs who were so well loved, he overlooked the fact that they were very old and lame and had reached the end of there lives.
He admitted that yes, he was wrong not to have recognised this.
The other points you have raised regarding goats being fed dog food and animal corpses being burned are pure fiction.

I wouldn`t think 3 was old for a pig. Amasing the lies he tells you! If the pig had seen a vet when it went laim, he may have been alive today!

alanmc wrote:
so Rebo and Redfoxy apart from hiding behind silly names you have both been to the Haven recently and saw for yourselves how much work has been done and continues to be done. Have you actually asked John what went on or do you just believe what you have read or been told by a friend of a friends friend. The court have had their say but have also set a precedent in their ruling to..... but you wont find out about that because it wasnt published just like a lot of other things because they werent juicy enough for the press.. oh well you believe the hype and we'll listen to the true facts.. all of them

So come one alanmc and clarwilts. What are your full names then. Although I think I could guess who you both are.

The pig that died was 2 or 3 years old. It was seriously lame and left untreated despite being told by the council to get a vet out. It has to be destroyed because it was suffering, it was not given any treatment or pain relief for months leading up to that.
The other pigs ranged from a few months to a few years with one that was elderly. They were left untreated with mites for several months despite being told to do so. They scratched until they had raw bleeding wounds. And they were kept in filthy pens with little or no bedding - which can cause disease and lameness in pigs such as the one that had to be destroyed.
And all the goats, a cow and some sheep were seized and destroyed about a year before he was banned because he fed them dog food.

Suddenly Rebo Is an expert on animal husbandry. It would truly be a sad story if any of it were true.
I really wonder what people like yourself have to do with animal rescue and re homing. You need to talk to the many hundreds of people with animals that are now in loving and safe environments..all thanks to John Warwick and his very large army of volunteers and supporters.

Firstly well done this man for finally telling people the truth about Warwick it can't of been easy

Just need a few more to tell the truth about the place but the truth has already been proved by the courts so that is not in question

Will you volunteers never see past your noses and the **** that he feeds to you if you cant then your idea of looking after an animal must be as bad as his.

Clarwilt wrote:
Suddenly Rebo Is an expert on animal husbandry. It would truly be a sad story if any of it were true.
I really wonder what people like yourself have to do with animal rescue and re homing. You need to talk to the many hundreds of people with animals that are now in loving and safe environments..all thanks to John Warwick and his very large army of volunteers and supporters.

I'm sorry there's no point in arguing when you refuse to accept the evidence. This was the case presented to the courts. They proved it using pictures and evidence from several vets. He pleaded guilty to these charges as stated.
The story of the Emperor's new clothes spring to mind...

Wufenbach wrote:
Firstly well done this man for finally telling people the truth about Warwick it can't of been easy

Just need a few more to tell the truth about the place but the truth has already been proved by the courts so that is not in question

Will you volunteers never see past your noses and the **** that he feeds to you if you cant then your idea of looking after an animal must be as bad as his.

Well said!!!!

Many of the long-term volunteers knew exactly what went on down there and raised concerns many times, and fair play to them for working so tirelessly to try to improve things.

None of them would have just walked away leaving the care of 100+ animals to JW alone, even if they did witness cruelty/neglect... I spent a few days there on my own and there really aren't enough hours in the day for one person to give that many animals the time they need.

I certainly saw plenty of disturbing things there, though only witnessed hen and rat carcasses burnt, everything else was disposed of off-site. Can't disagree about Mollie, sadly, I remember a few of the girls were trying to get JW to give her up to a BC rescue, unsuccessfully in the end.

Being involved in any rescue can be tough but SDAH was/is a place of extremes.

JW knew Matty (lame pig) needed euthanising, but it wasn't an easy thing for him to do. The majority of the pigs were not rescues, most were born there and the first generation of Tamworths were bought in. No excuse, just clarifying, there were far too many in the end as there weren't adequate facilities to keep boars and sows apart.

As said, the difficulty with JW always was that he refused to listen to anyone. Dozens of people must have come and gone over the years offering support and advice, but because he was so resistant, many lost interest and moved on. Time and again he had vets and Animal Welfare Officers down there offering advice which he ignored, again and again.
Nobody can expect to casually ignore the law and get away with it. He probably had more warnings than most.

It's a shame, JW has a good heart and and if he'd just listen to people, most of the problems could have been rectified. He certainly never 'pretended' to care for the animals when I was there, (he'd be nagged if he sat down for too long!!), I did not agree with many of his methods but he was more misguided than outright cruel.

Now more than ever, every rescue space is precious, the facility, once improved and better organised could be invaluable to the area.

I think if some of you got off your backsides and actually DID something to help instead of sitting in your darkened rooms criticising the people who actually Do something to help the huge numbers of unwanted animals in this town there would be some sense in this discussion. The place is not a dump as someone suggested. It needs money spent on it granted and that is what these people try very hard to do, raise funds. There is nothing else in this town and more and more people are finding it hard to feed and care for their animals. have you tried to get emergency help from the RSPCA? And Swindon Needy Dogs can't cope with the influx of strays.

Heard about the 'Big Society' that this government keeps promoting. Get off your arses, get some fresh air, Get your hands dirty. You might even enjoy it!

Clarwilt wrote:
I think if some of you got off your backsides and actually DID something to help instead of sitting in your darkened rooms criticising the people who actually Do something to help the huge numbers of unwanted animals in this town there would be some sense in this discussion. The place is not a dump as someone suggested. It needs money spent on it granted and that is what these people try very hard to do, raise funds. There is nothing else in this town and more and more people are finding it hard to feed and care for their animals. have you tried to get emergency help from the RSPCA? And Swindon Needy Dogs can't cope with the influx of strays.

Heard about the 'Big Society' that this government keeps promoting. Get off your arses, get some fresh air, Get your hands dirty. You might even enjoy it!

Errrrmmm! How do you know we are sat on our backsides sitting in darkened rooms? You don`t don`t know anything about any of us! Where did you hear Swindon`s Needy Dogs can`t cope with the influx of strays? I haven`t seen anywhere that a stray dog has been turned away or put to sleep because they couldn`t take it. Look who`s talking bull now! Can`t think of anyway to defend JW so start slagging off another rescue!!! Didn`t they take one of your dogs and rehome it???

Warwick is scum and a convicted criminal for animal cruelty. He has got off lightly and hopefully more people will tell the truth about him and his so called haven and further charges will be brought against him. He had chance after chance but as he's so stupid he cannot con people forever.

Swindon
District
Animal
Hell

Yawn.. Good night everyone. I expect you have been up all night bent over your little screens.
I hope the Adver closes this discussion soon because you will all need a bit more shut eye!!

Respect to you if that is true., but doesn't excuse your awful attitude. Don't let me interrupt you further, carry on with the good work..there is going to be plenty to keep you occupied with the closure of SDAH.

Clarwilt wrote:
Respect to you if that is true., but doesn't excuse your awful attitude. Don't let me interrupt you further, carry on with the good work..there is going to be plenty to keep you occupied with the closure of SDAH.

Wake up to the facts. Don't let Warwick fool you too. The evidence against him is overwhelming. Can't squirm his way out of it anymore. His lies caught up with him thankfully.

Clarwilt wrote:
The charge that John admitted to was not cruelty..It referred to his pet pigs who were so well loved, he overlooked the fact that they were very old and lame and had reached the end of there lives.
He admitted that yes, he was wrong not to have recognised this.
The other points you have raised regarding goats being fed dog food and animal corpses being burned are pure fiction.

Seriously???? It's not cruelty to allow an animal to live in excruciating pain for months as long as you love them? You seriously believe that???

I suggest that he could be what's known as an animal hoarder. He puts his own feelings before the welfare of those animals. And yes I have been there, many times over the years, from when he first began with such huge ideas to more recently. I've offered help, fostering, homes ..... All were refused. In fact the only thing he did accept were a car full of dog equipment which we donated to him, leads, blankets and grooming equipment. Some of which I was later told were sold. I hope if that was the case that the money went on animal feed or vet bills!!

Anyone who helps JW to restart any rescue is going to be encouraging his hoarding. It's an illness, an addiction. Do not feed his addiction. Help him to move on with a life that contains just a selected few pets, get well, and let rescues that can cope do the job.

Oh and perhaps it should be noted that JW continued taking animals months after he was first banned. As reported by the Adver. And witnessed by Facebook users who were surprised when his helpers advertised the fact on pet forums on that site!!!! Even a court order could not stop him. It's up to his friends and supporters now to stop feeding his addiction and start helping him to break it.

If you lived around farms and were brought up in farming communities, you would notice amongst herds of cattle, sheep, etc., there are many lame animals and very few of them receive attention. Agreed that doesn't excuse the owners but the fact remains that they do not get hounded by the authorities.
John Warwick has been hounded by a group of malicious people that have been successful in closing the sanctuary. Not content with that they would not like to see a new and improved sanctuary rise from the ashes and they are even jealous of the fact that his supporters would like to carry on raising money towards those improvements.
John doesn't hoard animals, they were rescued, fed, checked over, given shelter and re-homed.
Thank you for giving collars and leads etc., but you and many hundreds of others donate such items..Far more than would ever be needed, so of course they are sometimes sold or passed on. This is how the haven operated. The funds without a doubt went towards the high costs of vet bills, food, and animal bedding.
John has an illness, it is called MS but thankfully it hasn't affected his kind heart and he has more common sense and knowledge of animals than most.
Have a good rest John, with luck and the good friends you have, your work will one day continue.

Those awful rspca,Wiltshire council and numerous reputable animal caring people for taking Warwick to court after he had warning after warning.its all their fault, poor John did nothing wrong. They made him plead guilty,it has nothing to do with all the evidence presented at court. Poor John Warwick.

http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=mVBYTxywK
Lw

For those that never saw this ,,,,,

You are all too quick to blame him for not looking after these animals over the years....why on earth wasn't he helped more then.The RSPCA and authorities are all to quick to jump in as usual and start taking people to court and handing out fines...............
..a few thousand out of the RSPCA's account would have put an end to all this **** in the first place...........and it wouldn't have even made a dent in their account.All I say is good on yer John for at least trying to help those animals.

leafy1 wrote:
You are all too quick to blame him for not looking after these animals over the years....why on earth wasn't he helped more then.The RSPCA and authorities are all to quick to jump in as usual and start taking people to court and handing out fines...............

..a few thousand out of the RSPCA's account would have put an end to all this **** in the first place...........and it wouldn't have even made a dent in their account.All I say is good on yer John for at least trying to help those animals.

He wasn`t helped as he wouldn`t except it. Maybe if he had excepted help when it was offered, people wouldn`t be so enraged by him.

@Clarwilt

Quote "If you lived around farms and were brought up in farming communities, you would notice amongst herds of cattle, sheep, etc., there are many lame animals and very few of them receive attention."

Absolute rubbish. And yes I did spend a lot of time around farms when I was younger.

you talk about jws pet tamworth pigs.DO ANY OF YOU KNOW THE TRUTH ABOUT THESE PIGS.I doubt it .He got the piglets to fatten up for SALAMI. He was offered £250 for each pig by an Italian in swindon. He gave up on the idea when all the volunteers found out.IS THIS HOW YOU TREAT YOUR PETS.

leafy1 wrote:
You are all too quick to blame him for not looking after these animals over the years....why on earth wasn't he helped more then.The RSPCA and authorities are all to quick to jump in as usual and start taking people to court and handing out fines...............

..a few thousand out of the RSPCA's account would have put an end to all this **** in the first place...........and it wouldn't have even made a dent in their account.All I say is good on yer John for at least trying to help those animals.

No registered charity would hand any of their money over to amateurishly run shambles of a sanctuary which they would prefer to have closed down. How would a few thousand solve their fundamental problems?

Were SDAH a registered charity who submitted yearly accounts?

The company Warwick farm Limited was dissolved in May 1999
The company Swindon District Animal Haven was dissolved in August 1999
There are 6 companies dissolved for JW since 1995

"after a short phone call to the Charity Commission we discovered that charitable status was revoked in 2005 " taken from http://www.indymedia
.org.uk/en/2007/12/3
87346.html

SDAH were always a non starter as an "officially sanctioned" animal sanctuary.

If you have a sanctuary for domestic animals then you need to have someone on site 24/7. That means that you need to have living accommodation on site.

That means that you can't just buy cheap farmland as SDAH have. You need tp buy land with planning permission for living accommodation - which is very expensive.

Were I cynical, I would wonder if achieving retrospective planning permission, with the resultant increase in the value of the land might not be a good motive for trying to get a sanctuary up and running there. I do also have a reason for thinking so, above just random speculation (I visited when they first started up).

I'm an anonymous poster, so feel free to ignore my comments!

I visited SDAH probably around 1999 or thereabouts on a commercial basis.

I was amazed that he showed me detailed plans of the house - down to type of brickwork - he intended to build on the site (which has no planning permission)! Yet absolutely nothing regarding types of animal enclosures!

Well done Mr Dunn - I hope this encourages others to speak out about the real truth!

The place is a disgrace and should have been shut down long ago before more animals suffer. I can't believe people are fundraising to pay his fines - fines incurred for being found guilty of CRUELTY!

And for the record, yes I have visited the "sanctuary" on numerous occasions, yes I have offered help, and yes I do volunteer for other organisations.

Think the net is closing in on proven guilty Warwick. Jail not far off for him yet stupid followers will still defend the weirdo. Proven evidence not enough for some of his flock baaaaaaaaaa

Clarwilt wrote:
If you spoke to the hundreds of volunteers that have helped John over many years, you would find these accusations grossly unfair. It is impossible to save every animal that is ill. If these claims were true loads of people would have spoken out. Most of John's work goes unnoticed..that is caring for and re homing animals that have been cruelly treated and are unwanted. The Adver has reported on many occasions the good work John and his volunteers do. Not many would turn out in the small hours to rescue birds stuck up chimneys or foxes caught in wires. John even helped a family who had a fox in their house, he then took the fox to the vets for treatment of an injury. If there were more people like John Warwick in this world,it would be a better place. He is thought so highly of amoung the volunteers that they are still fundraising and holding tabletop sales to try to help their friend pay the huge and unjust fine that this council through their actions have imposed on him. Good Luck John, there are so many people behind you and you have loads of support.

well done to mr dunn for speaking out! i volunteered my help a number of times about two years ago. the dogs were kept in awful conditions - they had their own very small separate spaces in which they were expected to sleep eat and go to the toilet often when i visited each living space was covered in faeces and urine and the dogs were obviously very distressed. there was no organisation of volunteers so literally people would turn up and they could walk and or feed which ever dogs they wanted which obvioulsy resulted in some being over or under fed and others being under walked.i was told by a dog warden that john was well known for never checking prespective new homes for the animals as long as people offered him money he was happy for them to take an animal away. as for the pigs i visited once during the winter they were living outside and the whole area that they were living in was wet muddy and covered in faeces although i have never myself kept pigs i have owned both ponies and sheep and its obvious to anyone that any animal should have a dry area with clean straw to sleep etc. as has already been mentioned it was definetly a case of johns way or no way but i really dont think he has a clue how to run such a place. there obviously is a need for somewhere for local animals to be taken to however unless this place is totally cleaned up and other people are allowed to run it i do think its better that it stays closed

At last mr dunn has spoken out everyone in the farming community near wootton bassett and all the residents that I know around ballards ash all of which own land and lovingly look after their own animals despise the appalling way his animals are so say cared for they despise the awful scrapyard of a site which clearly is an eyesore and a health and safety hazard for volunteers and animals alike if this is where unwanted or animals whose owners are unable to care for are destined to go surely they are better off where they were or given to sanctuarys like the very good one that denise barrett runs in dauntsy just 2 or 3 miles away
maybe the clerk of Lydiard tregoze council is right in her comments after jw invited them in when he was trying to obtain this retrospective permission ''that the site resembles something of a shanty town'' surely these are words of an independent witness
and why is he always touting the adver every few weeks and why do the adver listen surely if the adver didn't keep giving this man press space he would have gone a long time ago

good riddance to john and his unwitting band of merry men

why doesn't he just sell up pay his fine out of his own money and donate the rest to a charity that does care and do everyone and a lot of animals a real favour

People like you who hide behind silly names are a joke. Sheepfarmer? I expect you know as much about sheep farming as I know about beekeeping.
I could find as many people as you who run Johm Warwick down, that would speak up for him..they just wouldn't lower themselves to anominously slate people, that are not in a position to defend themselves.
There are not enough animal rescues like the one Denise Barrett runs at Dauntsey. Animals in need of emergency rescue like the haven offered was a short term shelter while the volunteers found new homes. An example is the three cats rescued from the tip in boxes just before they went through the crusher..one could not be helped.
The place certainly needs a facelift, but animals don't notice when things are a bit overgrown or needing a coat of paint. As for health and safety, we all know what an over the top joke that is.The Advertiser has done an excellent job over the years reporting the good work and kind deeds of John Warwick and the team.
I don't know what your motive is to try and slur a persons character in such a nasty way but I do know that there is a malicious group of people, and I am not talking about the authorities, that were hellbent on getting the Haven closed. Some belong to other rescues and others belong to extreme animal right groups. Half the people commenting on here belong to that group and have no knowledge of rescuing sick or injured animals or have ever volunteered at the haven or been anywhere near John Warwick.
What business would it be of yours if friends of John...and there are many of them wish to help him pay off an unjust fine. Shows there are a lot of good people around that the likes of a small minded lot such as yourself could learn from.
.

Clarwilt wrote:
People like you who hide behind silly names are a joke. Sheepfarmer? I expect you know as much about sheep farming as I know about beekeeping.
I could find as many people as you who run Johm Warwick down, that would speak up for him..they just wouldn't lower themselves to anominously slate people, that are not in a position to defend themselves.
There are not enough animal rescues like the one Denise Barrett runs at Dauntsey. Animals in need of emergency rescue like the haven offered was a short term shelter while the volunteers found new homes. An example is the three cats rescued from the tip in boxes just before they went through the crusher..one could not be helped.
The place certainly needs a facelift, but animals don't notice when things are a bit overgrown or needing a coat of paint. As for health and safety, we all know what an over the top joke that is.The Advertiser has done an excellent job over the years reporting the good work and kind deeds of John Warwick and the team.
I don't know what your motive is to try and slur a persons character in such a nasty way but I do know that there is a malicious group of people, and I am not talking about the authorities, that were hellbent on getting the Haven closed. Some belong to other rescues and others belong to extreme animal right groups. Half the people commenting on here belong to that group and have no knowledge of rescuing sick or injured animals or have ever volunteered at the haven or been anywhere near John Warwick.
What business would it be of yours if friends of John...and there are many of them wish to help him pay off an unjust fine. Shows there are a lot of good people around that the likes of a small minded lot such as yourself could learn from.
.

in your comment about hiding behind silly names, I think JW calling it a haven just about tops the all time list of silly names. The Turkey and chickens that he kept in the pens opposite the pollytunnel had been in there for upto three years that i know of. They were never treated for red mite nor was their housing. Anybody who keeps hens will tell you that they should be regularly checked and treated appropriatly. the goats that were kept just inside the front gate never had their hooves clipped and why would anyone with brains keep a male goat with the females in the same field. also any goat keeper or sheep farmer knows that if you keep them in the same small pasture area for any length of time they will get parasites which need to be treated regularly. If JW is/was such an animal lover and such an expert on animals what excuse does he have? sorry I forgot he would use the one he always used on dozens of occasions which was "I'm too busy looking after the animals". That usually meant that he was to busy drinking tea and talking to people whilst others with good intensions who had little/no knowledge of the animals needs tried to do what was needed.

Clarwilt wrote:
People like you who hide behind silly names are a joke. Sheepfarmer? I expect you know as much about sheep farming as I know about beekeeping.
I could find as many people as you who run Johm Warwick down, that would speak up for him..they just wouldn't lower themselves to anominously slate people, that are not in a position to defend themselves.
There are not enough animal rescues like the one Denise Barrett runs at Dauntsey. Animals in need of emergency rescue like the haven offered was a short term shelter while the volunteers found new homes. An example is the three cats rescued from the tip in boxes just before they went through the crusher..one could not be helped.
The place certainly needs a facelift, but animals don't notice when things are a bit overgrown or needing a coat of paint. As for health and safety, we all know what an over the top joke that is.The Advertiser has done an excellent job over the years reporting the good work and kind deeds of John Warwick and the team.
I don't know what your motive is to try and slur a persons character in such a nasty way but I do know that there is a malicious group of people, and I am not talking about the authorities, that were hellbent on getting the Haven closed. Some belong to other rescues and others belong to extreme animal right groups. Half the people commenting on here belong to that group and have no knowledge of rescuing sick or injured animals or have ever volunteered at the haven or been anywhere near John Warwick.
What business would it be of yours if friends of John...and there are many of them wish to help him pay off an unjust fine. Shows there are a lot of good people around that the likes of a small minded lot such as yourself could learn from.
.

And what is your real name then? Because it isn`t Clarwilts or Claire!

I volunteered at SDAH many years ago and was distressed, horrified and generally baffled that such an appalling place was permitted to function. I did my best at that time to draw attention to it and found that the authorities already had their eye on JW. Time passed and I moaned, like many others about what I thought I knew about SDAH and then a year or so ago I decided to get off my backside and go and help and see what was going on for myself.

The conditions the animals were kept in were as appalling as ever for the dogs. The kennels were hardly lit at all and were freezing cold - I was there through the wintertime. The dogs were left in their own mess for prolonged times because even if John actually cleaned a kennel, he didn't arrive until late morning and promptly went and had a long, long tea break. I would always try and get the dogs out as quickly as possible since some of them desperately tried not to soil their own space. Some of the rabbits were in a new facility which gave them more space but they were easily able to escape from. They rarely had food or water when I arrived. The chinchillas were tucked away where nobody would see them and I was told by John they did not need any food except for hay. The poor poultry which were outside had a house a foot deep in sodden **** which they just had to stand in. They never had food or water when I visited. The indoor poultry were overcrowded and dirty and minus food and water as a matter of course. The ram at one time was confined in a shed, which was a wood store, and was in the dark. The hay for the farm animals was wet and mouldy. The cats had a better arrangement than in the past. Mind you, anything would have been better than how they had been kept previously. But they too were not kept clean and were frequently without food or water. The list goes on and on and on.

I think it is a shame the public do not know that John sent farm animals for slaughter for meat. Not what you would expect from a sanctuary. Sorry 'Clarwilt' this is a fact as all farm animal movemment has to be recorded. Those beautiful Highland cattle. How sad.

the calling of my silly name is quite perverse really as i am deep in the throws of lambing so are you calling all professional farmers idiots and my knowledge of sheep and other farming is backed up by years of further education at lackham college of agriculture unlike jw
i assure you we administer the upmost care to all of our animals so they reach the food chain for the public to eat no ill animal can ever reach the food chain it is not in our own interests to allow the animals to suffer or we would be out of business

as for the so called site just needing a facelift i think a meteorite landing would be more appropiate

also the land of jws is classified agricultural land and needs planning permission from the same local council that took court action against him for cruelty to agricultural and domestic animals for change of use as a sanctuaryso the site is operating illegally and has every right to be closed down by the local enforcement officer anne murphy who i am sure jw has had numerous dealings with

as for paying his fine why dont you go down to your local magistrates and offer to help pay off every other convicted criminals fines surely that would help rehabilitate them and prevent them from their life of crime it would appear that it hasnt worked for jw as he clearly defied his ban


maybe i should change my name to diamond dealer something i know nothing about same as jw and animal care

as for bees i went too bee keeping classes as a teenager and one of my parents was the foul brood and american foul brood inspecter for the ministry of agriculture fisheries and food MAFFnow called department of enviroment food and rural affairs DEFRA but you would know all about what that is wouldnt you clarwilt
it would be interesting what your dealings have been with the likes of DEFRA as all our inspections are perfect an legal like nearly every farmer i know unlike jw

Very impressive Sheepfarmer.. But it isn't really a contest of how clever we are and who gives a brass monkey's about what your parents did.
Perhaps you were also the school bully because that is what this issue is all about.

Still no real name Clarwilt????

Clarwilt wrote:
Very impressive Sheepfarmer.. But it isn't really a contest of how clever we are and who gives a brass monkey's about what your parents did.
Perhaps you were also the school bully because that is what this issue is all about.

No the issue is about the conditions that JW kept his "rescued" animals in nothing to do with school ground bullys. if you want to know about a bully ask JW about how he treated and spoke to any officials that came to his "Haven". When they first came to see him they were trying to give him helpful advice but all he could do was shout swear words at them informing them that it was his land and that he could do what he wanted. In the end the DEFRA lady had to have a police escort when she went there to inspect his paperwork relating to the farm animals, he ended up being advised that they(the police) would arrest him if he didn't stop his threatening behaviour.

At least now we are finding out about the real john warwick and the horrendous conditions he kept the animals and expected you very honourable volunteers to work in now and not the garbage play acting that has been forced down the publics throats by the rubbish the adver has been reporting all these years just remember those who live by the sword will die by the sword
fairplay to mr dunn and all you volounteers for now speaking out we know that you have volunteered for what everyone considers a very valid cause of saving animals hopefully you will be able to offer your very valuable time and effort to another animal rescue centre where i am sure they will be gratefully received and appreciated by the charity and the animals

Baaaa ! I thought you were busy lambing. Have you nothing better to do with your time!! ??
I certainly have, I would think most people are bored rigid with this repetitive rubbish.
We all know developers are eyeing up the land surrounding Swindon. Agricultural land can be reclassified. There is far more to this than meets the eye. The vultures are circling.!!

Baa indeed clarwilt it is very very true that we are indeed bored totally rigid with your repetitive rubbish so if you really do have such a busy and interesting life get on with it And stop boring us. The conditions at the "haven" were indeed terrible I "saved 2 animals by bringing them home with me and they are still here and very happy and content however it upset me to see the other animals kept in such a way so I stopped helping for as I've said before everything was johns way or no way no animal deserves to be kept in such conditions and all the do gooders with so much to say should open their eyes and see that place for what it was this discussion shouldn't be continuing the place is shut and that's how it should stay

debbie e wrote:
Baa indeed clarwilt it is very very true that we are indeed bored totally rigid with your repetitive rubbish so if you really do have such a busy and interesting life get on with it And stop boring us. The conditions at the "haven" were indeed terrible I "saved 2 animals by bringing them home with me and they are still here and very happy and content however it upset me to see the other animals kept in such a way so I stopped helping for as I've said before everything was johns way or no way no animal deserves to be kept in such conditions and all the do gooders with so much to say should open their eyes and see that place for what it was this discussion shouldn't be continuing the place is shut and that's how it should stay

the place may be closed but JW can appeal in a years time so the more information that comes out about the real conditions of the "Haven" the better.

I have heard that he has already put in an appeal against the sentencing so once again he has gained himself more time. How can he keep getting away with these appeals. Its over a year now since he was taken to court and closed down but still he has animals at the sanctuary and he now has a wormery, I guess thats because its the only living thing left that he isnt banned from keeping.

As for hiding behind silly names I strongly believe that Clairewilt is in fact John Warwick himself as many of the comments are just like the way he behaves and the fact that this person just will not listen to reason from genuine people who know what they are talking about. As said previously his way was the only way and no one could tell him otherwise.

There doesn't seem to be many people now commenting in favour of Warwick so I quess they have now realised that what had been said in court about him is actually true we just need some more to come forward and tell us their horror stories about the HAVEN.

Well done to all the volunteers who in the past have given their time and experience to try and make the place better for the animals there but whats the point when you cant make the owner listen to any advice or change his ways at all.

Bring in the bulldozers and the sooner the better.

Wufenbach wrote:
I have heard that he has already put in an appeal against the sentencing so once again he has gained himself more time. How can he keep getting away with these appeals. Its over a year now since he was taken to court and closed down but still he has animals at the sanctuary and he now has a wormery, I guess thats because its the only living thing left that he isnt banned from keeping.

As for hiding behind silly names I strongly believe that Clairewilt is in fact John Warwick himself as many of the comments are just like the way he behaves and the fact that this person just will not listen to reason from genuine people who know what they are talking about. As said previously his way was the only way and no one could tell him otherwise.

There doesn't seem to be many people now commenting in favour of Warwick so I quess they have now realised that what had been said in court about him is actually true we just need some more to come forward and tell us their horror stories about the HAVEN.

Well done to all the volunteers who in the past have given their time and experience to try and make the place better for the animals there but whats the point when you cant make the owner listen to any advice or change his ways at all.

Bring in the bulldozers and the sooner the better.

I don’t think it is JW hiding under the name of clarwilt, it might be his wife/daughter but not him as he would be too busy drinking tea and eating donuts!!!!Also why is the SDAH web site still active and requesting donations but no mention is made that JW can no longer have animals on his site due to him having a court ban in keeping farm and domestic animals. On the web site JW talks about his dream of opening an education centre to teach children about animals, was this a way of finding someone with deep pockets to finance it? Wouldn’t like to think what the children’s attitude towards animals would have been at the end of their “education” considering the state of the place!!!!

Clarwilt wrote:
Baaaa ! I thought you were busy lambing. Have you nothing better to do with your time!! ??
I certainly have, I would think most people are bored rigid with this repetitive rubbish.
We all know developers are eyeing up the land surrounding Swindon. Agricultural land can be reclassified. There is far more to this than meets the eye. The vultures are circling.!!

Just because people do not sing the praises of JW does not make them animal activists, vultures, from other sanctuaries or have hidden agendas, they just know what is right and what is wrong and have a love and compassion for animals. Developers would have to clear the toxic waste out first before anything could be done about using the land.