Cape Town – A staff member at Fallen Angels Pet Rescue picked up a scared and confused dog on the side of a farm road after it was dumped by its owner, and the organisation is now pursuing
legal action.
Melkbosstrand-based Fallen Angels owner Gayl Basson said a man
came to the organisation asking that they take in his dog as it needed medical attention.
“He was driving a black BMW 1 Series and asked me to take the dog. I told him that we were unfortunately full as we have 350 dogs in our care and gave him directions to the animal shelter just down the road to see if they had space,” Basson said.
Shortly afterwards, staff member Monika Scholtemeyer spotted the dog as she was returning from the shop, close to the R27.
“This dog also had a huge wound on her tail. I posted on Facebook and was immediately contacted by neighbours in this man’s street that recognised her and have been helping him treat his dog and they confirmed that it is his dog.”
Basson said they would now have to amputate the infected raw part of her tail as it could not be saved.
“I confirmed with a staff member at the shelter down the road that he did not go there to try to surrender her either, so (he) basically drove out and just dumped her heartlessly on the roadside. We kept her in a warm wendy house overnight with a heat lamp and big soft bed.
“We took her to our vet Dr Dani Hanekom in the morning at West Beach Animal Hospital where she has been kept and will have an operation. She is in a huge amount of pain. So much that she will not even eat.”
She said they would lodge a complaint in terms of the animal cruelty act with the help of a lawyer.
“He had many safe options where the dog could have gone. People need to see that animal cruelty will not be ignored and is unacceptable.
"If you cannot look after a pet, you shouldn’t get one. What are we teaching our children? Certainly not compassion and care,” Basson said.
If anyone would like to contribute to the dog’s vet bills they can contribute to the West Beach Animal Hospital. Nedbank Account number: 1048948714 Branch code: 198764, Reference: FA (your name).