Durban - A Verulam pet owner has been lambasted on social media for filming their dog being attacked by a black mamba instead pulling it to safety.
The dog apparently died after being bitten by the black mamba.
The video has been shared widely on Facebook. It is also on private security company, Reaction Unit South Africa’s (Rusa) Facebook page where it has elicited angry comments from the public.
According to Rusa the amateur video was supplied by a resident in Trenance Park, Verulam.
“The resident was alerted to the snake on her property by her dog. The family pet was bitten by the snake and later died. The Black Mamba measuring approximately two (2) meters was killed by a passerby who then removed it from the property. Reaction Unit South Africa did not attend this callout,” the company said.
The National Council for SPCA’s said from watching the video it was clear that there were opportunities to get the dog to a place of safety, or at least to attempt to call the dog in.
“The snake had given warning signals and that was an opportunity to call the dog in and get it out of harm’s way. The snake only made it’s strike after a few warnings. Given South Africa’s wildlife, it is quite common for wildlife to move through residential and built-up areas, which often results in conflict,” said spokesperson Meg Wilson.
She said the result of this was often fatal for either the person, the wild animal, or in this case, the domestic animals.
“The public can be proactive and research how to manage these kinds of conflicts to ensure that no creature or person is harmed due to lack of knowledge, fear, or negligence”.
Comments on the video on Facebook were scathing of the owner for not protecting the pet.
Luancia Reddy questioned why the owner did not all the dog inside during the incident.
“Common sense would tell you that the snake is dangerous and will most likely bite the dog. Would they let their child stand next to the snake!? Absolutely awful people! They don't deserve to have a pet ever again,this is extremely sad to watch”.
Fatima Adhman echoed Reddy’s comment and said: "Imagine if that was ur (sic) child would u (sic) have left the child to be bitten?
Keshlen Reddy however said conclusions were being drawn after only viewing a portion of the video.
“We only saw a small snippet of events and conclusions are being drawn. Maybe she tried to call it in and it didn't listen. Maybe she didn't. We are also not sure what action was taken after the dog was bitten. Inspect away inspector from SPCA, and good luck with getting a prosecution”.
Daily News