Durban – A Pinetown resident was overjoyed when his dog was returned to him on Thursday after fears that she may have been stolen by dog theft syndicates in the area.
Animal welfare organisations have warned Durban dog owners of a definite spike in theft of dogs – of all breeds and sizes – for dog fighting.
Barry le Roux said he was worried when he returned from the Midlands to find that his husky, Panda, had gone missing on Saturday, January 21.
“I went to check the kennel at about 1:30pm and she wasn’t there. I thought maybe she had pushed through the wire,” he said.
He went to check at nearby Lahee Park where he spoke to two security guards who told him they had seen a dog being picked by a Hilux double cab bakkie at the robots at Pinecrest Mall that day.
“When I got to the Pinecrest Mall, I asked if they had CCTV but they said it was only pointed at a door with no footage of the outside,” he said.
After having searched the surrounding areas, he posted Panda’s details on social media. On Wednesday afternoon, he received a call saying his dog had been returned to the SPCA.
“When I got there she was already vetted and everything was all right with no sign of harm done,” he said.
However, Le Roux believes dog theft syndicates operating in his area may have stolen Panda, but the dog was returned because he had a search rescue crew to investigate and there was a R2 000 reward being offered.
“It was a very emotional reunion this morning for Barry le Roux and his beloved dog named Panda, a female husky, which has been missing for over a week-and-a-half,” the Kloof and Highway SPCA reported on its Facebook page.
“Panda was brought into our SPCA by a member of the public early this morning and dropped off at our standby kennels. The pair were delighted to be re-united with one another and there were many happy tears of joy,” it said.
The Phoenix Animal Care and Treatment co-founder, Neeri Naidoo, said dog theft was a real issue around Durban and criminal syndicates were using dogs for fights.
“One of the reasons for the increase in missing dogs is that we have criminal syndicates which use dogs for fights, and drug addicts who buy them so they can resell the dogs for drugs,” she said.
Naidoo said it was up to owners to protect their dogs from thieves.
“People should put their dogs out of sight, where dog smugglers cannot reach them. If they’re near the gate, remove them and try to place them near a safe area around the house,” she said.
She also warned that thieves were no longer only targeting big dogs such as pitbulls and German shepherds but were looking for any type of dog they could use as a bait in dog fights.
Nikki Mathios, founder of Pet Rescue Pinetown, said dogs were “definitely being stolen for dog fighting purposes”, adding that while she could not confirm whether a particular breed was preferred by dog thieves, there was a current trend where one week a particular breed, such as pit bulls, were targeted, and then a few weeks later another breed of dog was being targeted.
“This indicates that dog fighting is on the increase with syndicates looking for bait dogs,” said Mathios.
Communities needed to be vigilant about people loitering in a neighbourhood as the modus operandi was to drive around and see where dogs were left on properties with open gates, or were docile and would approach when treats were handed to them.
She believes it has been prevalent in affluent suburbs in Durban and was on the increase.
“We have an average of five to 10 dogs reported missing each month.”