Video: Elderly man viciously attacked by two pit bulls in Pretoria West

An elderly man was viciously attacked by two pit bulls in Pretoria West on Saturday.

Medical First Responders Jackie and Andre Rademeyer were some of the first people on the scene.

“We were told that the elderly man came to visit the lady who lives in the house. He was standing right in front of the house. The gate was closed at that time.

“He phoned the lady who opened the gate; the two dogs ran to the man. In the video footage, you can see the man trying to move back but losing his balance before falling to the ground.“

Jackie said the dogs ripped off a part of the man’s scalp while pieces of his skin remained on the tar road.

The man also sustained severe bite wounds to his hand, knee, and region near his groin.

Watch the video here:

Jackie added that the Tshwane Emergency Service was called for an ambulance. She said after several attempts and waiting for nearly an hour for a state ambulance, a private ambulance was called to assist.

Rekord attempted to get a comment from Tshwane Emergency Services but to no avail.

Xander Loubser of Best Care Ambulance Services confirmed that the man was transported to the Pretoria West Hospital for further care.

By Monday, the elderly man was still recovering after the attack.

“We spoke to him on Sunday and was told he received stitches and was told to go and see a specialist on Monday as he will be needing a skin graft for the injury to his head,” Jackie said.

The call for the banning of the pit bull breed came into the spotlight in 2022 when the Sizwe Kupelo Foundation urged the government to look into the banning of the dog following the death of a 10-year-old in Gelvandale, Gqeberha.

The foundation launched a petition on the Change.org website, which currently has 139 792 signature.

It called on the government to join countries like Russia, Finland, Denmark, the UK, Portugal, parts of Germany, China, Brazil, and Australia to ban or consider restrictions on ownership of the breed or its importation.

“It is time that the government takes decisive steps and imposes a complete ban on the ownership of pit bulls as domestic animals. Such a move would prevent further attacks and unnecessary deaths. We cannot continue sending out messages of condolences for something that can easily be prevented,” read the online petition.

According to a report by IOL, after a meeting in April last year with the government to hand over the petition, the foundation was informed by Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development Minister Thoko Didiza that the government was concerned over the loss of lives and injuries caused by pit bulls, and gave assurances on a solution. But to date, there has been no action.

The National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) previously said it stands in solidarity with the Sizwe Kupelo Foundation for the protection of our people- especially the vulnerable, who are the most common victims of dog attacks. 

“Although the NSPCAs mandate is the prevention of cruelty to animals and promoting good animal care – the NSPCA also values human lives.

“Recently, there has been widespread media coverage on dog attacks against humans- with Pitbull Terriers becoming the notorious representative of the attacks, although other breeds of dog have also been responsible for attacks.”

The NSPCA said not only do people suffer from dog attacks, but other animals have also been victims of dog attacks and have been mauled to death.

“The aggressive animals themselves have also been found subjected to extreme abuse and cruelty in the manner in which they are kept, trained, and even killed. This is an issue where both human and animal life have been placed in danger by irresponsible people who lack the skills and knowledge required to handle power-breeds.

“At first glance, the petition may appear to be outrageous, especially to Pitbull owners, however, upon careful reflection, the petition advocates for the protection of people and responsible pet ownership. The petition calls for all Pitbulls to be castrated/sterilized which would prevent the current rate of uncontrolled breeding. The petition also calls for stronger regulations for the keeping of Pitbulls (and other power-breed animals) requiring owners to have permits to keep such animals.“

It furthermore said dog breeds with the potential to be aggressive and cause harm to other animals and people are easily obtained. In the hands of uniformed or irresponsible people, the dogs can become a risk to the people in their communities. 

“Too often, Pitbulls are acquired by irresponsible people to portray an image of ‘power’, for dog fighting, breeding and/ or for security purposes.

“These dogs are incited and trained to become human and animal aggressive, and very quickly the animal becomes high risk. All too often these dogs live compromised lives in cages or on chains which typically leads to an increase in aggression and further increases the risk of attack.“

The NSPCA said that as the media continues to report on the dangers of owning power-breed dogs, it foresees that a number of people will no longer want their dogs.

“The NSPCA urges all owners who no longer wish to keep their dogs to take them to their local SPCA, animal welfare shelter, or private veterinarian. It is without a doubt that SPCAs, which are not funded by the Government and most recently excluded from LOTTO funding, will now have to bear the brunt and added expense of dealing with even more unwanted animals being surrendered to the SPCA.

“If you are in possession of an aggressive animal, by law, you are compelled to ensure that the animal is kept within the confines of your property and in a manner that meets the needs of the animals in terms of the Animals Protection Act and the Five Freedoms.”

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