Dog stabbed 13 times by armed robbers in Pretoria

An eight-year-old Rottweiler, Naka, managed to save his family from attackers during an attempted home invasion in Zwavelpoort, Pretoria East sustaining 13 stab wounds in the process.

According to Naka’s owner, Leonie Steenberg, she found her dog in a pool of blood on March 7 around 01:30 on her back veranda.

Steenberg said she woke up in the middle of the night after their electric fence alarm was triggered. Naka stopped the invaders before they could get inside the house. They stabbed him and fled.

“We phoned neighbours to ask if they could see anything suspicious in the property from the outside. They had reported to have not seen any activity.”

Steenberg said she opened the back door and found her other Rottweiler dog sedated however, Naka was lying on the ground, struggling to breathe and bleeding profusely.

“We took him to the vet immediately,” Steenberg said.

Naka was presented to Valley Farm Animal Hospital in Faerie Glen in a life-threatening state.

Emergency veterinarian Dr Anel Ligthelm examined Naka and found that he had multiple stab wounds over his body, and he had lost a lot of blood.

Naka was also having trouble breathing as he had a substantial stab wound to his thorax that resulted in a pneumothorax – a collection of air outside the lung but within the chest cavity.

The pneumothorax caused Naka’s lung to collapse.

According to the spokesperson for Valley Farm Animal Hospital, Beaulah Zeiler, Dr Ligthelm wrapped Naka’s chest in plastic sheeting to cover the stab wounds.

“The air stuck in his chest cavity was aspirated (sucked out) to allow him to breathe easier. The active bleeding sites over his body were located and brought under control.”

Zeiler said the dog received a blood transfusion to increase his blood volume.

Specialist surgeon, Prof Marthinus Hartman, was consulted on the case.

Hartman examined Naka and found that he had a severely fractured rib. The stabbing to the chest wall was inflicted with so much force that the blade (possibly a panga or large hunting knife) cut one of the ribs in half.

Naka had to undergo two surgeries and stayed in high care for a couple of days.

“He was a model patient who had a lot of love to give our hospital care staff and crept into everyone’s hearts. Thankfully, he recovered well and was discharged to go home to his very kind and grateful family,” Zeiler said.

She added that Naka has given new meaning to the word loyalty.

“He fought with all his heart to protect his human family, all the while being attacked and stabbed from all angles. The intruders must have realised that despite being armed with weapons, this was a fight they would not win and disappeared into the night.”

Valley Farm Animal Hospital awarded Naka with a certificate of bravery.

“Naka is a true fur hero who demonstrated that his love for his human family shows no bounds.”

Steenberg said Naka will never be the same. “He is a bit restless, but he will recover.”