After two separate incidents of cats being found tortured, a Sherwood woman has reason to believe there might be people purposefully hurting cats in the area.
Cat Care volunteers, Sharon Rogers and her husband, Ian Rogers, received a call about a cat with a cardboard roll tightly forced around its head. They managed to catch the cat and took him to a vet where he was sedated immediately. “The vet struggled to get the roll off his head. It had been on for a while. It just seems to me as if this was done on purpose,” Sharon said.
The next day, the Rogers received another call for a separate, yet similar incident. “I got the second call about a cat with a plastic bag around the head. Ian went out immediately to help the cat. The bag was tied on tightly with a seresto collar. This could only be deliberate,” she said.
Sharon said the cat’s head was soaked and the Rogers are positive that if they had not gotten hold of the kitten by the afternoon, the cat would probably not have survived. Both cases were located very close to each other.
Fortunately the kitten’s collar had a contact number on it. The owner was traced and the cat is now safely back home.
“Please keep a close eye on your cats in Sherwood,” Sharon warned.
The torture of animals in South Africa is a crime. In terms of the Animal Protection Act 71 of 1962, fines of R40 000 and/or 12 months direct imprisonment can be given per count.
According to Karien van Schalkwyk, “The Animal Anti-Cruelty League has had a matter recently where a man who kicked a kitten which caused its death was sentenced to six months direct imprisonment without the option of a fine,” she said.
“The public should report animal cruelty to their nearest animal welfare organization, so that it can be investigated and addressed. We also appeal to eye-witnesses to come forward and speak out for the sake of those who cannot speak for themselves. We can only lay charges and compile a docket if we have evidence as to who committed the offence. Members of the public can of course also report offences relating to animals to SAPS. Once evidence and witness statements have been obtained, we register our docket with SAPS and a prosecutor decides to enroll the matter or not. AACL is proud of our successful conviction rate,” van Schalkwyk added.
Although the AACL is dealing with pending cases involving torture and cruel treatment of animals, they are not aware of any current cases with similar modus operandi of cats in Gqeberha.
“Should members of the public be aware of similar matters, this must please be reported to us. Our phone number is 0414561776. This is also a whatsapp line,” van Schalkwyk concluded.
The Newton Park Vet also advised locals who find hurt cats to contact their nearest vet.
