Police are investigating a case of animal cruelty after a group of boys allegedly beat and attempted to drown a cat at a park in Fernham, Phoenix.
Durban: Police are investigating a case of animal cruelty after a group of boys allegedly beat and attempted to drown a cat at a park in Fernham, Phoenix.
Neerie Naidoo, the founder of Phoenix Animal Care and Treatment, said a resident informed the organisation about the incident last Wednesday.
She said a volunteer from the organisation was dispatched to the park to assess the situation and to take the cat to the vet.
“When the volunteer got to the area, residents told her that earlier in the day they heard noises in the park. It sounded like someone was chopping trees.
“After an hour and a half, some of the residents followed the sound and found the boys trying to drown the cat in a drain. When they did not succeed, they beat the cat with sticks and a sling.”
Naidoo said the boys had allegedly told the residents they were beating the cat because it was pregnant.
“The residents said the boys had a pipe, which they intended to insert up the cat. The boys ran off when residents questioned them. When our volunteer saw the cat, it was in a horrifying state. She placed it in a blanket and rushed it to the vet but it died on the way.”
Naidoo said the vet confirmed that the cat suffered bleeding to the brain due to blunt force trauma to its head.
“The vet told the volunteer that the male cat was under the age of one. The cat’s body was broken, bruised and wet. His eyes were popping, his mouth was injured and he had injuries everywhere. We are waiting for the post-mortem results to see exactly how many of its bones were broken.”
Naidoo said the organisation opened a case at Phoenix police station and was offering a reward of R10 000 for information that would lead to the boys’ arrest.
“The cat died a cruel, slow and painful death. What they did was inhumane. They saw the animal suffering. They heard its cries but they continued to act violently. Today, it’s an animal and tomorrow it could be a human being.”
Colonel Thembeka Mbele, a provincial police spokesperson, said a case of animal cruelty was opened at Phoenix SAPS. The matter is under investigation.
If you have any information call Naidoo at 073 005 4275.
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