Dog burnt but not treated: Durban man convicted of animal cruelty

Justice was served five years and eight months later for a dog that was found with burn wounds all over its body in Reservoir Hills, Durban.

Azhar Jacob on Wednesday pleaded guilty to charges of animal cruelty brought against him and was declared unfit to own or be in charge of any canines for a period of two years.

He was also ordered to pay the Kloof and Highway SPCA the costs incurred of R930.

According to the Kloof and Highway SPCA manager, Barbara Patrick, they received a complaint about a dog on a property in New Germany Road that appeared to have a ‘large sore’, and the complainant thought that this dog might have been burnt in December 2018.

“Our inspector, Petros Simamane, responded, and on arrival at the property, a worker let our inspector onto the property and took him to the office of Azhar Jacob.

Patrick said the owner of the business and the dog informed the inspector that intruders had come onto his property on December 11 at about 03:00 and ‘burnt the dog with diesel, and set it on fire’.

“He alleged that he had called the Durban and Coast SPCA for help, but ‘they had not come’. It was later confirmed, in an affidavit, that no call had been received by the Durban and Coast SPCA. Inspector Petros Simamane then asked to see the dog, and Jacob asked one of his workers to take our inspector to the dog, a ‘Boerboel male, who is tan in colour’.”

Patrick said Simamane found the dog under a truck, ‘shivering and in a terrible condition’.

“He had raw, open and infected wounds, which appeared to be burn wounds, all over his body, including his head, ears and eyes. The dog was in clear distress, pain and suffering as a result of his wounds, and he cried in pain when moved. Simamane and a worker put the dog in our vehicle as gently as they could, but the dog still cried in agony when it was loaded into the vehicle.

“There was no sign of shelter or bedding for the dog; it was lying under a truck on dirty ground with its severely infected wounds, with a thin wire around its neck that was cutting into its wounds,” reported Patrick.

The ‘unnamed’ severely injured and suffering dog was rushed to the Kloof and Highway SPCA clinic and assessed by veterinarian Dr Cara Andreasen.

“In her affidavit, Dr Cara describes, in detail, with photographic evidence, the extent of the untreated infected wounds on the dog, and it was confirmed that the Boerboel was distressed and hyperventilating.

“She reported that had this dog received immediate veterinary treatment, its suffering could have been prevented – instead, it suffered the same pain that a person would have with the extent of the burns and wounds. This poor dog, with no name, was only about a year and a half old, and sadly could not be saved due to the extent of its injuries and the infection caused by the wounds not being treated.”

Patrick added that nothing can change the suffering of this young Boerboel who had no name, but thanked the concerned member of the public who reported this cruelty and everyone involved in this case for ensuring that ‘justice’ was served.