Teenagers set dogs on wildlife
11 June 2008, 07:46
By Kamini Padayachee
Thirty-one birds were attacked and killed when a group of teenagers set their dogs on exotic wildlife at a popular South Coast nature reserve at the weekend.
Captain Vincent Pandarum said security guards at Crocworld had told police that a group of five young men with dogs had entered the premises on Sunday.
"The manager of Crocworld called police and told us that birds at the nature reserve had been killed. When police arrived at the scene the suspects had already fled, but they had left behind one of the dogs, which is now being kept by a local veterinarian."
Pandarum added that the dogs appeared to have been trained.
"They appear to be mongrels, but they have been trained to hunt and are very aggressive. The motive for the killings does not appear to be theft, and we believe that these teenagers were intent on killing the birds for fun."
Crocworld manager Roy Brodrick said the attack had been the second incident in the past few weeks.
"About two weeks ago, a group of teenagers climbed over a boundary fence and then cut a hole into the fence for the dogs to come in. They then set their dogs on animals and birds.
"The dogs killed eight meerkats, six greylag geese and three Nile monitor lizards. These boys went to great lengths to do harm because they had to carry the dogs into the pits the meerkats and lizards were kept in, and then carry them back out."
Shot two
Brodrick said last Sunday the guards heard the sounds of birds in distress and alerted him.
"We managed to shoot two of the dogs as they were attacking the birds. But the other two dogs fled with the boys. It was horrible seeing the birds in that state.
"We lost flamingos, which are an endangered species, mandarin ducks, Carolina ducks and other exotic birds. It is very disappointing because we had built such a good collection of birdlife here and now 30 of them have been destroyed.
"Since Sunday, the indigenous birds that are free to fly about have not returned to Crocworld."
South Coast veterinarian Gordon Perchman, who was called to the scene to tend to the birds, said the attacks had been brutal.
"What I find horrific is that these young men took their dogs and put them in enclosures with birds and animals that could not escape. It was a brutal and cruel act, and it was one of the worst scenes I have had to attend to.
"Some of the birds had been completely ripped apart. Others had been bitten badly but were still alive, so we had to put them down to spare them the pain."
Crookes Brothers, the owners of Crocworld, are offering a reward to any person who can provide information leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrators.
Anyone with information on the incident can telephone Umkomaas police Detective Inspector Maya Chetty at 039 973 1011.
kamini.padayachee@inl.co.za
Thirty-one birds were attacked and killed when a group of teenagers set their dogs on exotic wildlife at a popular South Coast nature reserve at the weekend.
Captain Vincent Pandarum said security guards at Crocworld had told police that a group of five young men with dogs had entered the premises on Sunday.
"The manager of Crocworld called police and told us that birds at the nature reserve had been killed. When police arrived at the scene the suspects had already fled, but they had left behind one of the dogs, which is now being kept by a local veterinarian."
Pandarum added that the dogs appeared to have been trained.
"They appear to be mongrels, but they have been trained to hunt and are very aggressive. The motive for the killings does not appear to be theft, and we believe that these teenagers were intent on killing the birds for fun."
Crocworld manager Roy Brodrick said the attack had been the second incident in the past few weeks.
"About two weeks ago, a group of teenagers climbed over a boundary fence and then cut a hole into the fence for the dogs to come in. They then set their dogs on animals and birds.
"The dogs killed eight meerkats, six greylag geese and three Nile monitor lizards. These boys went to great lengths to do harm because they had to carry the dogs into the pits the meerkats and lizards were kept in, and then carry them back out."
Shot two
Brodrick said last Sunday the guards heard the sounds of birds in distress and alerted him.
"We managed to shoot two of the dogs as they were attacking the birds. But the other two dogs fled with the boys. It was horrible seeing the birds in that state.
"We lost flamingos, which are an endangered species, mandarin ducks, Carolina ducks and other exotic birds. It is very disappointing because we had built such a good collection of birdlife here and now 30 of them have been destroyed.
"Since Sunday, the indigenous birds that are free to fly about have not returned to Crocworld."
South Coast veterinarian Gordon Perchman, who was called to the scene to tend to the birds, said the attacks had been brutal.
"What I find horrific is that these young men took their dogs and put them in enclosures with birds and animals that could not escape. It was a brutal and cruel act, and it was one of the worst scenes I have had to attend to.
"Some of the birds had been completely ripped apart. Others had been bitten badly but were still alive, so we had to put them down to spare them the pain."
Crookes Brothers, the owners of Crocworld, are offering a reward to any person who can provide information leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrators.
Anyone with information on the incident can telephone Umkomaas police Detective Inspector Maya Chetty at 039 973 1011.
kamini.padayachee@inl.co.za
- This article was originally published on page 1 of The Mercury on June 11, 2008
Pretoria
