UPDATE: Municipality on the defence as SPCA investigates bunny park
MIDRAND - The SPCA has not yet concluded its investigations into the Bunny Park in Benoni, after the park came under fire earlier this week with reports and a video of dead bunnies surfacing.
Pictures of deformed and injured bunnies were also released to the media by Midrand’s Kitty and Puppy Haven’s Samantha Berger.
SPCA inspector Solomon Mayisela said,”We still need to have a meeting with the municipality management and then we can conclude our report.” Mayisela would not be drawn to discuss the agenda of the meeting.
Themba Gumede, spokesperson for the municipality, insinuated that the park was under funded which led to the dilapidated condition it was in. “Over the last four years, about R6 million was spent on the upgrading of the Bunny Park. Unfortunately, no funds were provided for the current financial year.” However, he did say that their Multi-year Capital Budget division would source additional funds to address the issue. Gumede did not state the date of the commencement of improvements to the park. He simply said, “When funds become available.”
Although Mayisela has claimed that the SPCA has sent weekly notifications and warnings to the municipality about the conditions at the park, Gumede said they were unaware of any complaints about the park. He also refuted claims that the animals in the park were starved and malnourished. “None of the animals in the park are underfed. They are fed vegetables as well as a good quality rabbit pellets. They have access to food 24 hours a day.”
Although the SPCA has not concluded their investigations, Gumede refuted Berger’s claims of malnourished cows at the park. “According to the local SPCA, all the cows at the park are in a good condition.”
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