Many pit bull owners are surrendering their dogs to the SPCA

The National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) has received a number of pit bull surrenders.

The council said it has received calls from concerned owners worried about the safety of their pets, while some were surrendering their animals to the SPCA as they feared they would not be safe if left alone.

The council said it had established that people were acquiring pit bulls for the wrong reasons and mostly for security protection as a “weapon or as a status or power symbol”.  

“The NSPCA can confirm that SPCAs around the country have been receiving a number of pit bull surrenders. We are sure other animal welfare organisations might also be receiving pit bull surrenders,” said NSPCA spokesperson Keshvi Nair.

Two pit bulls mauled three-year-old Innocent Saule to death in a neighbour's yard in Sekoti Mpate Phomolong in Hennenman, Free State, on Sunday.

At the time, angry residents wanted to kill both dogs and also turned their wrath on the owner.

Members of the Welkom public order policing unit were summoned to the scene and took the owner to a safe place.

Residents attacked the dogs, and one of them was killed with garden spades, hit with stones and burnt. The other pit bull was taken by the SPCA for safekeeping.

Free State police spokesperson Capt Stephen Thakeng said an inquest was opened for investigation and there will be charges under the Animal Matters Amendment Act.

“A thorough investigation will be conducted regarding the circumstances which led to two pit bulls mauling the boy.

“We have noted with concern a clip making the rounds on social media platforms where the two dogs are seen mauling the deceased. Residents must refrain from doing it. This must stop with immediate effect,” said Thakeng.

Nair said a possible reason for the surrender of pit bulls is people are realising what the NSPCA has been saying: if people do not have the relevant expertise, experience and knowledge of the breed, they should not own a pit bull.

“People have seen in the media now, more than ever before, how dangerous and fatal an attack can be because the animal is in the wrong hands. As a result, people are being responsible, they are trying to keep their families safe, their communities safe and the animal safe by surrendering the dogs to the SPCA.”

Owners may also have been unaware they can surrender the dogs to the SPCA for free.

“They have dogs they don’t know how to control, that they don’t want, that they are afraid of, and now they know the SPCA is a resource,” she said, adding  that though dog fighting is illegal, pit bulls are still being used for this cruel, “sinister crime”.

“There are very few people who get pit bulls because they genuinely love and understand the breed and have the knowledge and expertise to own them,” she said.

The SPCA will remove an animal if its welfare is compromised or if the animal has been surrendered while they are at the property.

“In cases of dog attacks, the SPCA tries to remove the animal to keep the community and the animal safe. Owners of the dogs will have to come to the SPCA and surrender the dogs themselves. The SPCA does not charge money for an animal to be surrendered, it is just a matter of dropping the animal off at the SPCA,” she added.

Free State health MEC Montseng Tsiu said preliminary investigations revealed the boy succumbed to severe head injuries and was declared dead at the scene.

“The emergency medical service crews that attended this incident couldn’t hold back their tears. They have been afforded time off. They will attend counselling today [Monday],” she said.

She added her voice to calls for the breed to be removed from communities.

“Each day we learn of another death while [pit bulls] bring nothing but sorrow to many homes who lose their loved ones. It is possible that there are many more unpublished and unaccounted deaths that may have been caused over time.”

She appealed to owners of the breed to surrender the dogs and help end the carnage.

Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.