Puppies sold on the street rescued and safe

As a Paws R us representative was rescuing the two puppies, the men who were selling them offered to sell her turtles as well.

September 30, 2016

Portia Mokowe 2 minutes read

Google was rescued on the streets of Tarlton.

Locals complained on social media after they had noticed one of the most overlooked forms of animal cruelty.

Last weekend two men were selling puppies at the intersection of the N14 and R24 roads in Tarlton. It was hot, with temperatures above 30 degrees. There was no shade or place where the puppies could rest. They were held up for people to see, panting and lethargic.

Animal rescue and re-homing group, Paws R Us team members and volunteers came to the puppies’ rescue soon after they had seen them on the side of the road.

“As a general rule we do not buy puppies from such people as it only increases the supply, but as rescuers and animal lovers it is even harder to leave them behind,” said Jean Lynch from Paws R Us.

A Paws R Us representative went back to confront the guys selling the puppies and explained that what they were doing was inhumane and illegal. She found that they were selling the puppies for R500 each and negotiated it down to R150. During the negotiations they mentioned that the two puppies were from a litter of 10 and the remaining eight puppies would be sold in the same manner. They tried selling her three turtles as well.

“This is highly illegal and we will report this to the SPCA because puppies born under these conditions often have compromised immune systems because the mother will not have been vaccinated. All puppies should receive a series of vaccinations starting at six weeks of age. Puppies sold like this on the side of the road will not have been vaccinated. So the risk of taking highly infectious diseases into the suburbs is tremendous,” Jean told the News.

She further said that diseases such as Parvovirus infection and canine distemper can originate anywhere in unvaccinated dogs, but puppies are meant to stay with their mothers until they are at least eight weeks old. The men were selling them from as young as four weeks.

The puppies are now happy and safe and they were named Google and Yahoo.

“We are thrilled that Google and Yahoo are safe with us and their lives will be changed. However, without funding and support from the public we cannot save their siblings too.” She further appealed for sponsorship and support from the community so that they could do much more to help animals such as Google and Yahoo.

“We cannot do much in terms of poverty and unemployment, but we will be able to save many more animals and start educating the communities,” she told the News.

Contact Paws R Us on woof@pawsrus.co.za or visit their Facebook page at Paws R Us SA.