Durban - DOGS, cats, one tortoise, one hadeda and a dassie were among the animals affected by weekend fireworks in Durban following Diwali celebrations, animal rights organisations reported yesterday.
Brigitte Ferguson of Kloof and Highway SPCA said their staff had worked 24/7 to ensure animals affected by the fireworks were taken care of.
“A total of 24 dogs, five cats, one tortoise, one hadeda and one dassie were admitted as stray animals".
“Thankfully, six dogs were claimed by their owners this weekend,” Ferguson said. “Sadly one dog and one cat were killed in motor vehicle accidents and brought to our SPCA.”
The organisation appealed to pet owners to take care of their pets during fireworks season. The SPCA still had to deal with Guy Fawkes on November 5 and New Year’s Eve.
Durban & Coast SPCA marketing manager Tanya Fleischer said four dogs were brought to their SPCA on Sunday night. One from Verulam was badly injured.
“We have been receiving lots of calls today (yesterday) for collection of stray animals, as well as calls from people reporting their lost animals,” Fleischer said.
“No animals have been claimed as yet.” She encouraged people to check with their local SPCA and vets for missing pets, and to share the message on their community WhatsApp groups.
Fleischer said microchipping pets helped in finding them should they go missing.
eManzimtoti SPCA manager Tracey Girling said they were called out to one dead dog that had jumped over a fence and been hit by a car.
“Two animals were brought in injured and had to be euthanised, while five have been reported lost,” Girling said.
One of the weekend casualties, Bruno, a German Shepherd, is recovering after a firework exploded in his throat in Phoenix.
According to a report by the Kingdom Cats Sanctuary, Bruno belonged to a family living in a housing complex in Phoenix.
“They were having a braai and Bruno was outside with them. A cracker had been thrown but before the family could react, he picked it up and it detonated in his mouth. They immediately rushed him to the vet. The child that threw the cracker was severely traumatised after the incident.
“Bruno is doing well, still sedated with an antibiotic drip in case of infection, and oxygen. Initial X-rays reveal no damage to his throat,” Kingdom Cats reported.
Neeri Naidoo, of Phoenix Animal Care and Treatment (PACT), said the effect of fireworks continued for days because injured animals often crawled into bushes and died slowly.
“Children had tied a firework around the tail of a dog. Luckily, the owner had seen what happened and removed the firework before it went off. Another dog was frantic and got stuck between burglar guards. We had to cut open a piece of the burglar guard to free the dog,” Naidoo said.