GIVEAWAY PETS - WARNINGS AND THE REALITY
The National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) received the following message by e-mail from a colleague in Zimbabwe: -
"We are finding that adult dogs are coming into the country quite legally, and then being sent to the rural areas - for breeding or hunting. These dogs are good quality animals.
Would it be at all possible for you to advise Rescue Centres and other animal welfare societies to send out bulletins to the public advising them not to sell or give their adult dogs to people they don't know, should they be emigrating or wishing to hand over their dog for whatever reason.
In fact to be very careful who they sell puppies to. I know it's a hard one, but perhaps people are not aware that their pet is being sold on to people who cannot afford to look after them properly."
This message comes shortly after a report in the Herald newspaper that "Notorious murderer and former psychiatric patient Trevor Nel has launched a "front company" that claims to find loving homes for abandoned dogs, when in reality he is training Alsatians to be vicious killers, used in brutal dog fights, while using smaller dogs as "bait".
For the past several weeks, he has placed an advert in The Herald's sister publication Weekend Post saying: "Call me if you are needing a good home for your Maltese or Fox Terrier or Alsation. Phone 078-6838268". "
The NSPCA cannot emphasise sufficiently that people with dubious motives (to say the least) actively trawl the Internet, classified advertisements and other means of offering animals "free to a good home." Investigations by the NSPCA revealed that brokers sourced dogs, undertaking to find them homes on plots, when in reality they were being sold as security dogs and transported to countries further north in Africa.
If anyone is unable to keep a pet, for whatever reason, please think carefully and consider not only all the options but the potential consequences of what option is being considered. Be realistic and act in the interest of the animal itself. Once it has been handed over or even "sold" there can be no turning back or legal redress if the animal finds its way to Zimbabwe or worse.
SPCAs will not turn away any animal being donated. Concerted efforts are made to find suitable and permanent homes for animals. Pre-home checks are undertaken, legal adoption agreements signed and all animals homed are sterilised.
The reality of what happens to giveaway pets is harsh but needs to be kept in mind.
No comments:
Post a Comment