Durban - In the wake of a hadeda’s being horribly injured in a shooting incident involving an arrow, the Kloof and Highway SPCA has urged parents to teach their children to be responsible when using “toys” and not to use innocent animals as targets.
The SPCA’s spokesperson, Lisa Gadd, said that on Friday they received a call from a Kloof resident who had seen an injured hadeda in their garden.
She said inspectors went to the area and found two hadedas, one of which was seriously injured.
“One hadeda flew away as they approached, but the injured bird battled to move and was only able to fly as high as waist height,” he said.
Gadd said the inspectors caught the injured hadeda and took it to the Kloof and Highway SPCA clinic.
“An arrow was protruding from the bird’s torso and had penetrated right through. The arrow measured 75cm in length. Unfortunately the bird could not be saved,” she said.
Gadd said they had a zero-tolerance policy towards animal cruelty and asked members of the public to report any cruelty they witnessed.
“We would like thank the kind member of the public for phoning us so we could help save this poor injured bird from further suffering.”
In December last year, Durban man Alexander Hewitson, 25, was convicted of animal cruelty after shooting a hadeda with a pellet gun. He was fined R3 000 and received a criminal record. The bird had to be put down.
Barbara Patrick, of the Kloof and Highway SPCA, said the National Council of SPCAs regarded the case as a landmark victory for wild birds.
The Mercury