Sandton SPCA appeals for community support to replace ageing inspector vehicles
With vehicles clocking nearly 400 000km and failing during active rescues, the Sandton SPCA is calling on the community to help raise R1.5m to keep their inspectors on the road.
The Sandton SPCA has launched a fundraising campaign to replace its ageing, and increasingly unreliable, fleet of inspector vehicles, a critical lifeline in its fight against animal cruelty.
General manager Nick Smith said they currently have five cars, many of which have clocked closed to 400 000km and are becoming both unsafe and unroadworthy.
“We’re currently in a situation where we’ve got five vehicles, which are getting very, very old and unreliable. We’ve got inspective vehicles, which are used for going to respond to cruelty complaints, conduct home checks for adoptions, and take the inspectors to anywhere where there’s animal cruelty.
“They’re getting so unreliable that even last weekend we had one where the wheel actually came off, and it had to get towed in. It was difficult, because we already had cats, which had been rescued, in the back of that vehicle, and we had to dispatch another vehicle to rescue the cats from our own vehicle, then tow the vehicle in and get it fixed.”
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Smith said the Sandton SPCA covers 179 suburbs, from Johannesburg CBD to Lonehill, from Winnie Mandela Drive to the N3 highway. He added that the region includes both affluent suburbs and under-resourced communities, such as Alexandra township, where demand for animal welfare services is particularly high.
Currently the animal welfare has three qualified inspectors, but Smith said plans are underway to increase the number to five by June. “We get a lot of requirements for our services from Alexandra township next door to us. So, there’s a lot of work for us to do and three inspectors are insufficient. Our five-year plan, which we are now two years into, is to grow that number of inspectors to 8 to 10.
“With that number of inspectors, and reliable vehicles, we can actually do a much better in animal welfare, including education programmes in schools and community outreaches.”
Inspector manager Xolane Mncube said vehicles are essential tools in their daily operations. “Our job, as the SPCA, is to go out and help the animals. We are the society for the prevention of cruelty to animals.
@caxtonjoburgnorth WATCH: Sandton SPCA inspector manager Xolane Mncube shares the daily challenges faced as ageing vehicles threaten their ability to respond to animal cruelty cases. Video: Xoliswa Zakwe #SPCA #Sandton ♬ original sound – Caxton Joburg North
“Maybe you’re asking yourself: ‘How do we prevent cruelty to animals?’. We go out when we get reports, and we investigate. We do proactive work. When we go out, we also do outreach programmes to rescue animals that need help. Obviously, we use the vehicles to do that.”Standing beside one of their ageing vehicles, Mncube pointed out the visible wear and tear.
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“This is one of our oldest vehicles at Sandton SPCA, which has been responding to animal rescues for nearly 20 years and has done 370 000 km.
“The gear knob is coming out, the handbrake needs carefully attention, and tyres and other parts need repairs.” Mncube added that without reliable vehicles, they cannot go out to do the rescues and be the voice of the animals.
Smith said their goal is to raise R1.5m to replace the entire fleet with new vehicles that come with warranties and maintenance guarantees. So far, they have raised R217 000 through initiatives such as Christmas gift wrapping and community support.
“We’re really appealing to anyone that can help us, either with monetary donations or with cheaper vehicles. We’re looking to buy new vehicles, so they come with a warranty and guarantees and so forth, but we’re looking to anybody that can help us in any way towards contributing to those vehicles.”
Mncube added: “We want to keep on going and be voices for the animals out there, but, without your help, we cannot do it. As you know, we are a non-profit organisation, and we depend mostly on community support to keep the doors open for the animals.
“Please, support Sandton SPCA, so that those vehicles keep moving, and we can go out there and help our community in need.”
Details: call Sandton SPCA on 011 444 7730 or email info@sandtonspca.org.za.
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