The Roodepoort/ Krugersdorp SPCA has won a high court challenge against the owner of a dog surrendered to the organisation, who then changed his mind and challenged in court for the return of the dog.

According to SPCA manager Mandy Cattanach, a member of the public reported a badly neglected and seemingly injured dog stuck in a drain at a business premises in Rail Street, Florida, on January 2.

“Our inspector reacted, and when he reached the premises, he found the dog named Bitsy, a German Shepherd mix, stuck in the hole, unable to get out.

“It was a senior dog, and while there were no obvious injuries, it was clear it was in really bad condition.

“The inspector, Eugene Haricharan, was unable to get to the dog since it was inside the locked premises. Numerous attempts to attract the attention of anyone inside the property were unsuccessful, so he resorted to contacting the security company whose board was on the gate.

“The security company contacted the owner, who sent his daughter to the premises.

“It turns out the owner was on holiday at the time, and a worker was left in charge of looking after the premises and the dog.

“When the daughter opened the gate, it quickly became apparent that the dog suffered from arthritis in its hind legs.

“It was highly aggressive and would not allow the inspector to remove it from the hole.

“The inspector wrapped the dog in a blanket and removed it from the hole, gave it some water, and assessed its condition further.

“The dog was very thirsty and hungry, its coat was severely matted, it was infested with pests, and it had fly bites on its ears.”

Cattanach adds that the inspector called the owner and urged him to send the dog to a veterinarian.

“The owner refused and consented to surrender the dog to the SPCA.

“It was brought to our premises, fed, and assessed by a vet. The dog was so aggressive, it had to be tranquilised for its medical examination as well as its grooming.”

Cattanach says the owner of the dog called the SPCA an hour after he had consented to the surrender, and attempted to retract the surrender, which was refused.

“He showed up at the SPCA a few days later, demanding the return of the dog. We refused again, and the man had to be escorted off the premises by security.

“Several legal letters and threats later, we found ourselves in court defending our actions. The first application against us was struck off the roll and then resubmitted.

“Luckily, the court found that the dog had been legally surrendered to the SPCA.”

Cattanach adds that the SPCA will be pursuing criminal charges of animal cruelty against the dog owner.