On Friday, April 9, one of the Animal Welfare nursing assistants received a call from a Tambo Village (Manenberg) Animal Welfare Community Champion concerning a sick dog cruelly secured by a short chain attached to a dangerous metal stake in the ground.
He claimed that the dog had lost almost all of its fur and appeared to have a severe skin infection. He also noticed that the dog had no water and that her food bowl was empty.
He was distressed to observe that her movement had been restricted to an arms-length and horrified to think that this was all the space she had to exercise, sleep and defecate in. To him, it appeared as though her owner had forsaken her.
The Animal Welfare Society’s subsequent investigation led by Trainee Inspector Sivuyile Kilwa revealed that Kuhle belonged to an elderly lady who claimed that she did not know who to approach for help.
The owner did not argue the fact that Kuhle looked very sick and would have benefitted from seeing a vet but then went on to explain that she cannot afford to take time off work as she is “needed in the kitchen.”
After listening to her hollow pleas and pointing out just how badly Kuhle had been neglected, Sivuyile stated that he was going to confiscate Kuhle in terms of Regulation 468 of the Animals Protection Act No 71 of 1962, and report the incident to SAPS which he duly did.
Today after first checking in on Kuhle who is being treated for a multitude of serious issues, Sivuyile returned to the address to get the owner’s agreement to surrender her and to serve her with a Written Warning for animal cruelty and neglect.
Kuhle in the meantime was receiving treatment for her skin disorder and for the first time in a very long time got to enjoy the gentle touch of the Animal Welfare nursing assistants who are determined to transform this timid and tormented soul into someone’s beloved companion.
For the first time since being cut free from her chain, Kuhle has been able to take more than a couple of steps and is now able to freely scratch those itches and reach her food and water bowls without being chocked. It’s impossible to say what she loves most – her food, her freedom or her newfound Animal Welfare Society friends.
“Investing in her recovery is our duty and we sincerely hope that you will help us with her recovery at this extraordinarily tough time when helping cases like Amala appear to have become the sad norm rather than the tragic exception,” says the Animal Welfare Society.
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Picture/s: Supplied