Earlier this year, animal lovers across Cape Town gathered to raise funds for the SPCA to purchase a much-needed bone plating kit.
The event, called Pawfeet Love, was hosted in August and participants took to the streets with their furry friends to walk in honour of the victims of animal cruelty and neglect whose broken bones prevented them from walking too.
Dr Mark Middleton, the SPCA’s own senior vet, took the challenge up in a very different way and risked his own life and limb by abseiling down Table Mountain with his veterinary team. All in all, participants raised a staggering R211 492.00
“With at least one orthopaedic patient being admitted to the SPCA every single day, receiving this bone plating kit is really is a wish come true for us! Broken bones previously broke our hearts, because as a welfare hospital, we didn’t always have the tools we needed to save animal lives,” said SPCA spokesperson Belinda Abraham.
“When fractures occurred too close to the hock (wrist) limbs had to be amputated and in the worst-case scenarios where more than one limb was broken or if fractures occurred in areas where our current X-Fix remedy could not be applied, like the pelvis or the spine, lives were being lost. This plating kit will change so many lives, not only for the animals we treat but also for our veterinary team whose hearts will now be spared the heart-breaking decisions they have had to make in the past.”
Christmas comes early for the veterinary team on November 18, when they finally took possession of the SPCA’s very own custom-manufactured orthopaedic plating kit supplied at a generous discount by Roth Medical.
“We are as excited as a bunch of three-year-olds on Christmas Eve,” said Middleton. “It’s incredible to see South Africans coming together during this time of crisis and to witness how love always wins, no matter what the challenge is. This bone plating kit represents so much to us – it is not only a tool to help us heal animals in need – it will be a permanent reminder of how brightly the spirit of unity shone during a very dark time for all of us.
“We will never forget how animals continued to matter to so many, even during a time of great human suffering and this will always keep us motivated no matter how much cruelty we witness on a daily basis. We have been given so much more than simply a tool to heal fractured bones and we can’t thank everyone who came out in support of this event enough.”
Picture: Pixabay