There are a lot of crimes that are taking place within our communities, whether its drugs, prostitution, kidnapping, shootings, robberies, the list is endless.
The one crime which seems to be not much talked about is the dogfights which take place on a daily basis. According to Cora Bailey, the founder of Community Led Animal Welfare (CLAW), dogfights have actually increased in our community.
Groups of young men from Westbury, Riverlea, Claremont, Bosmont, Coronationville, and Newclare are involved in this crime.
“Younger boys have learnt to steal dogs and bring them to these dogfights, and although people just see it has dogs, this crime actually breeds into other crimes.
“A person who is constantly watching dogs tear each other apart is bound to become an angry being and this means that they themselves will fight with others,” said Bailey.
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She explained that dogfights go hand in hand with other crimes such as theft, drugs, assault, and rape. According to Bailey, CLAW is the pioneer of community-based primary veterinary care in South Africa.
The services they offer are sterilization, vaccination, parasite and pest prevention, emergency care and pet owner education.
Bailey said that they visited Bernard Isaacs Primary School not so long ago to educate learners about this crime and the consequences.
The National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) conducted ongoing investigations by their Special Investigations Unit (SIU) and the Provincial Organised Crime Unit which led to the arrest of ten men involved in the bloody dogfights.
The ten appeared in the Lenasia Court on November 6.
“People who get gratification from dog fighting demonstrate that they have low empathy and would likely be willing to engage in violent behaviour.
“This is why it is imperative for action to be taken against the violence of dog fighting, not only by the NSPCA but by other law enforcement authorities as well,” said senior inspector Wendy Willson of the NSPCA SIU.
According to Wilson and Bailey, the American Pit Bull Terrier has become one of the most popular dogs to use in these fights.
These dogs are either bred or stolen and they are denied their freedom because they are beaten, starved, or injected with steroids to increase their aggression.
They are also kept in small, dirty cages and unfortunately, some of them die brutally in these fights as they tear each other apart.
If the dog is seriously injured but makes it out of the fight alive, they are usually left to die while there have been reported cases of dogs being hanged, strangled, electrocuted, drowned or beaten to death.
The NSPCA discovered that this is a multimillion-rand industry with an intricate underground web ranging from underground fights with stolen dogs to a carefully planned and organised enterprise which uses family bred dogs which are held in a location specially designed and maintained for the purpose of showcasing these brutal events.
