The Durban SPCA have seen a marked increase in pets being dumped or abandoned and they urge pet owners who no longer want their animals to drop them off at their nearest SPCA and to not abandon or dump them.
“Abandoning or dumping an animal is against the Animals Protection Act and owners caught doing this will be charged with animal cruelty,” said Durban SPCA marketing manager, Tanya Fleischer.
This warning comes after recent CCTV footage emerging of an unsuspecting pet to be dumped at the side of a busy street. The footage depicts a car pulling up next to the curb. Nothing happens until the traffic lights turn green and the queue of waiting cars moves past. Then, the front passenger door opens. Out comes a person’s hand, holding a cat basket. The basket is turned upside down and shaken vigorously. Two young cats fall out and disappear under the car. The door closes and the vehicle drives off.
The terrified cats run towards the pavement and desperately look for somewhere safe to hide. She said that if they had run the other way out into the street they would most certainly have been run over and badly injured, if not killed.
“As an animal lover, you’ll find this as shocking as we did. What kind of person would do this cruel and cowardly thing to a trusting, defenceless pet? Someone without the smallest grain of human kindness or compassion. Someone who couldn’t be bothered to drive 8km to our SPCA and surrender the animals responsibly. Someone who then told blatant lies to avoid the consequences of his cruel and illegal action.
“We know, because we managed to locate the owner. And when our inspector called at his home to question him, he claimed that the cats had gone missing after he accidentally left a window open when he went to work! But he’s not going to get away with it, if we can help it,” declared Fleischer.
She urged people to help them send a clear message that animals matter, “They can’t just be thrown away like unwanted garbage. They are sentient beings who feel fear, pain and sadness. Fortunately, the cats, which are little more than kittens, were rescued by caring members of the public and brought to our SPCA, where they have fully recovered from their ordeal and are now ready to be adopted. Together we can create a world where every animal is treated with kindness and compassion.”
The Durban SPCA can be contacted on 031 579 6500 for any animal related queries.
