Heartbreaking tale of abandoned puppies and the fight against parvovirus
“It is heartbreaking for me. I sat there with her and she wagged her tail.”
Those were the words of 4 Paws and a Tale Rescue founder Nicky Koekemoer who spent her Saturday with a puppy with parvovirus (parvo) before it died in the early hours of Sunday.
This was one of at least four or five puppies that were dumped across the Craigieburn and Roseneath areas on the KwaZulu-Natal south coast.
This puppy was picked up from a stormwater drain and taken to Koekemoer.
Initially, Koekemoer took to Facebook and in a post said the puppy was dying.
Speaking to this publication, Koekemoer said she did not know who was going around dumping puppies.
She said she knew the puppies were siblings because another puppy was found on a road and they looked alike.
“This person is just throwing them away,” Koekemoer stated.
“In SA this is normal?”
Zoning in on parvo, Koekemoer said it is a contagious virus that is airborne. It affects the lining of the dog’s stomach and the dog bleeds to death.
“It is painful,” she said.
She said if a dog regurgitates or defecates in the sand, parvo can live up to a year in the sand.
Parvo does not affect humans or cats, she said.
Koekemoer also said there are many parvo cases at this time of the year.
She said if dogs undergo their required vaccinations, they are safe. Therefore, it is imperative puppies are vaccinated.
“There is no excuse,” she said.
Meanwhile, Koekemoer recalled an incident where a motorist opened his car door on the highway and dumped a dog. Other motorists almost drove over it.
“This dog was so stressed, it tried to get away from me,” Koekemoer said.
She urged people who do not want their dogs to surrender them to the SPCA.
With the recent fireworks season, Koekemoer said many dogs are missing due to the fireworks. She said if fireworks are hard on us, they are worse for dogs because they have sensitive hearing.
She said owners were also guilty because they did not make provisions for their dogs. For instance, their properties are not secure.
thobeka.ngema@inl.co.za