Family fearful after dogs brutally beaten to death
Alleged dog killer released on bail.
A family is living in fear after bail was granted to a man who allegedly killed their dogs in their Pebble Sans complex home in Mooikloof Ridge at the weekend.
“We have moved out of our home, and into a small place we are sharing with another couple. My husband Neels, my baby son, and I are all living in one small room,” said Leané Wolmarans, owner of the three dogs.
Johan van Zyl, the man accused of killing the three small dogs Habana, Bakkies and Zackie, appeared in the Hatfield Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday morning.
He faced a charge under the Animal Protection Act.
He was granted bail of R2000 and warned to be back in court on 19 May. Van Zyl, a small, skinny man with blonde hair, left the courtroom with a black jacket wrapped over his head.
Wolmarans’ mother Ans Robbertse was house-sitting on Saturday evening for her daughter, who was away for the weekend.
“I immediately suspected that something was wrong when the dogs did not run to the gate and bark. As I drove in I saw a large amount of blood in lots of places around the garden. As I walked I also found pieces of brain, and a trail of blood leading to Van Zyl’s home.”
The dogs were apparently beaten to death with a golf club.
Van Zyl’s attorney, Christo Bester, declined to comment, saying the matter was still sub judice.
Tshwane SPCA official Andrew Kekana said an autopsy on the three dogs — a Jack Russell and two mini-greyhounds — was underway and the results were expected soon.
Leane’s father Tom Robbertse urged anyone with information that could assist the police to call the Boschkop police station.
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