Discarded bait costs dog owner over R10,000

Local fishermen are reminded of the dangers of dumping their used tackle on the beaches, after a dog ingested hooks lying among discarded bait. Resident Edward Rice had to fork out over R10,000 in vet bills after his yorkie Gizmo ate two hooks that were discarded among some bait at Toti Main Beach on Thursday, 7 June.

“One hook was caught in his throat and the other in his stomach. He had to have surgery for the vet to remove the hooks and he is lucky to be alive,” said Edward. “Fortunately the operation went well and we picked him up Friday afternoon. He will take a while to mend but we are just happy he is home and OK.

I went for a run on the beach again on Monday (11 June), without the dogs this time, and saw the same car guard who pointed out to me that Gizmo had something stuck in his mouth last week. He showed me exactly where the bait had been lying (when Gizmo ate it) next to the bench at the parking lot in line with Nyoni Rocks. There is a bin about four metres away, so there was no excuse to discard old bait and tackle on the floor. It is simply a case of inconsiderate laziness.

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With the sardine season picking up, there are plenty of fishermen on the shore and we are seeing more and more discarded tackle. My colleague took a photo while snorkelling the other day of a dead giant kingfisher, tangled up in fishing line and I have seen woolly-necked storks recently in Toti with fishing line knotted around their legs.”