Highveld Ridge SPCA gets eviction notice
Staff at the Highveld Ridge SPCA were traumatised by the recent events that led to the NSPCA euthanasing over 160 animals.
Traumatised, heartbroken, and angry is how one would describe the morale of the employees and volunteers at the Highveld Ridge SPCA after their authority body, the National SPCA, swooped in and euthanised more than 160 animals over two months.
That news made media headlines, and the HRSPCA was labelled as “failing suffering animals”.
The Highveld Ridge SPCA employees were subjected to gathering animals, all of which, according to a media statement from this local SPCA, were in perfect health and available for adoption, and handing them to the NSPCA to be euthanised.
According to the HRSPCA, this happened at the end of November/start of December and again on February 7.
The Ridge Times visited the HRSPCA’s premises on February 22 and saw a clean and well-run facility. All the remaining remaining in the HRSPCA’s care looked well taken care of, healthy and fed, and showed no signs of trauma, distress, or illnesses.
Most kennels were unoccupied, except for a cat recently brought in and 26 dogs, of which 15 are available for adoption.
These animals urgently need forever homes because the kennels are closing down. Ricky B has served the NSPCA with an eviction notice to vacate the premises, which means the local SPCA must be off the property by March 7.
The HRSPCA relies on public funding and donations to pay salaries, run their vehicles, feed the animals, run the premises, and pay the ever-accumulating vet bills.
So where do 26 dogs, one cat, and eight staff members go from here?
Although the SPCA is known as a “kill shelter”, the HRSPCA members are pro-life and do all they can to give an animal a second chance.
They give the animals time and don’t just resort to euthanasia. When there is no other option, such as an old, sick or aggressive animal, then they will euthanise.
According to its media release, the NSPCA is also considering prosecution per the Animals Protection Act 71 of 1962.
“Our committee and volunteers have always been committed to raising funds for the day-to-day running and paying staff salaries,” said the HRSPCA.
In a media statement, the HRSPCA claims the NSPCA showing up in November came when the usual influx of animals arrived during the festive period.
“The HRSPCA struggles with on-site euthanisation because we do not have a registered animal welfare assistant (AWA),” said the HRSPCA.
An AWA is an individual registered with the South African Veterinary Council who can carry out humane euthanasia.
“Without an AWA, the HRSPCA has been forced to rely on private veterinary services doing euthanisation. This comes with the associated costs of using private veterinary services and having limits placed on the HRSPCA regarding the number of animals allowed to be euthanised.
“The HRSPCA has repeatedly, over a year and a half, asked the NSPCA for assistance on this matter, to no avail,” said the HRSPCA.
The HRSPCA said when the NSPCA showed up again in February, there was plenty of room still in the kennels and that the HRSPCA was nowhere near capacity.
The HRSPCA also said they are always transparent with the public and would never allow the public near the animals in their care if there was an outbreak of any disease.
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“As soon as we take a dog to a vet like it should be done, and if they are tested positive, we do a deep clean of all the kennels with several disinfectants for days. The only way to tell if these animals are sick is if they are tested,” said the HRSPCA.
The HRSPCA has since posted images on their Facebook page of animals that were euthanised by the NSPCA and that were in perfect health.
One dog that was severely neglected and displayed open wounds was surrendered by its owner to the HRSPCA a day before the NSPCA’s first visit.
A vet appointment was to be made for its treatment, but the dog did not make it to the vet because the NSPCA euthanised it. The HRSPCA services 18 towns in the Highveld area, with Bethal SPCA being the only other SPCA shelter in GMM.
They recently posted educational information on the parvovirus, but the NSPCA cited this as evidence of an outbreak. The HRSPCA said this allegation was entirely false. There were no outbreaks of parvovirus during this time.
Read the NSPCA’s complete statement here: https://nspca.co.za/highveld-ridge-spca-fails-suffering…/
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