ZNSPCA July 2005 Update

ZNSPCA July 2005 Update



We were elated to receive the lovely award from Humane Society
International for Extraordinary Achievement and Commitment at the
Animal Care Expo in April. This recognition has kept our Inspectors
buoyed during the period since, which has been a very difficult time
for us all. Most of you will have read or heard about recent
developments which have left over a million Zimbabweans homeless in the
middle of winter with night time temperatures plummeting to nearly
freezing point.



Obviously animals are once again caught up in the mayhem following
government's 'Operation Murambatsvina' (Shona for "clean out
the filth") and Operation Restore Order and SPCA centres are
'baby-sitting' a variety of different animals as their owners try
to relocate and rebuild their lives but many are now living on the
streets or in the ruins that remain. Another sad but inevitable
result, exacerbated by the dire state of the economy, is the
surrendering of many animals to SPCA centres and Inspectors.



The situation on farms has settled down somewhat and the focus still
remains on the location and recovery of the hundreds of horses which
were left behind. However, as political tensions mount, there have
been a few further incidents on farms. Belinda, the Chinhoyi Inspector
carried out a rescue in the Lions Den area on 21 June after the owners
of Friedavill Farm had been forced to flee and left nine dogs behind,
mostly Healers, including two of Kanya's puppies which were
originally rescued in 2001 when Two Trees was attacked and Nhandi
(Kanya's mother) was found in ruins.



One of the farm employees is to be commended for his bravery as he
found some of the dogs which fled at the time and took them to the
owners who had sought refuge on a neighbouring farm. When Belinda
arrived at the farm she found three Healers who had remained during the
attack and tried to defend the property - 'Casper', 'Heidi'
and 'Maisie'. Although all were alive they had paid a price for
their bravery. Belinda reports that they could not follow her as all
were limping so badly. Another employee at the farmhouse reported that
the dogs had been locked in the house and beaten. Belinda carried the
injured dogs out to her vehicle but she said they were obviously in
pain as they all winced and tried to snap at her.



Belinda reports that there was furniture and belongings scattered
everywhere and despite there being a lot of people present, she was not
prevented from removing the dogs, however the brave employee who
recovered the dogs which had fled was chased and threatened whilst he
recovered the remaining dogs.



Our small band of Inspectors are still stretched to the limit and we do
desperately need to increase the number of Inspectors we have in the
field in order to get to all animals in need as well as coping with the
increasing demands for assistance being placed on our Regional
Inspectors from the urban areas.



An abattoir near Harare was found to be slaughtering animals using a
knife and several security companies are being monitored following
either impounds or warnings being issued regarding the underweight
condition of their working dogs.



Following negotiations, crocodiles on an occupied ranch were released
by the war vets and relocated to Kariba.



Ostriches were found to be dying of starvation on a farm in Marondera
which had also been taken over. Simon consulted with the previous
owner and permission has been obtained for him to feed the birds.



The Inspectors are also spending a great deal of time attending to
donkeys and draught oxen in the rural areas who are being heavily
relied upon by rural communities who are struggling to make a living or
grow crops.



Most of you will have learned that former MP, Roy Bennet whose farm
featured regularly in our previous reports, has been released.
Unfortunately, another farmer, Phillip Mennie, was attacked in Chipinge
on Sunday and received serious head injuries. He was dragged from his
vehicle by six men when he stopped at the farm gate and was
head-butted, punched, beaten and kicked. The farmer who suffers from
glaucoma was unable to see after a sever blow to the back of the head.
Two other farmers who tried to rescue him were also head-butted and
beaten with sticks. He has been hospitalized in Harare and his
condition is reported as being stable.



A current major challenge is a crippling fuel shortage which has
grounded many SPCA vehicles and is bringing remaining industry to a
halt and will no doubt worsen the current food shortage. Many shelves
are bare and mealie-meal (national staple), bread, sugar, oil and of
course pet food are all in short supply. Our usual suppliers of vet
meds and drugs report that they are unable to import even essential
drugs such as euthanaise, vaccines, anesthetics and dewormer as they
cannot secure forex from the government.



With ongoing kind support from those who continue to stand by us at
this very challenging time, we will keep going and do everything in our
power to continue to safeguard the extremely vulnerable animals of
Zimbabwe.



I will end off with an extract from a report by the ZNSPCA Regional
Inspector for Matabeleland, Glynis, on the situation following
Operation Murambatsvina:



"We heard from the public that Killarney and Ngozi squatter camps had
been destroyed and we proceeded to load our truck with the necessary
equipment - cages, meat and ropes, etc. On arrival in the area we were
saddened by the sight of the people sitting amongst the ruins of their
homes, holding their pets. Initially, on approaching the people, there
was resistance because they did not trust us and didn't want to give us
the only belongings they had left that had any worth. After much
persuasion and discussion they realised that we were there to help and
we documented all the animals and their respective owners.



In two days our team of four collected 155 chickens, 7 cats, 18 dogs, 2
rabbits, 26 guinea pigs and 3 ducks. By the afternoon of the fist day
the word had spread and people were running to meet us and set up
designated points for pick ups. The squatters became so trusting,
handing us there pets not knowing if they will ever see them again. We
were all deeply affected by the sight of the owners hugging their dogs
and cats and begging us to look after them. One old man brought me his
black hen "madam - take care of Peggy for me, please" he said. I
assured him that Peggy would be well looked after. The Bulawayo SPCA
kennels are now full and we are struggling to feed all the animals. We
do not know when the people will reclaim their pets. We can only carry
on taking care of them and carry on rescues in other areas".

.