As the public outcry to ban pit bulls gains momentum, the government this week met with breeders, its first move to determine what lies behind a series of vicious attacks that have stunned the nation.
The department of agriculture and rural development met with pit bull breeders on Wednesday at the University of Pretoria to understand the cause behind the recent spike of incidents where pit bulls maul and kill children.
“What we asked them is what type of cross-breeding have they been doing. Secondly, we asked them to share information about the behaviour of the animals that they have been breeding. That will assist us in understanding the behaviour,” department spokesperson Reggie Ngcobo said.
“Immediately as they give us the information, we will take it to our veterinary services so that they can do the necessary test to give us scientific proof.
“We want to understand if it is something that was used during breeding. We want to know what causes the anger [in the animals],” Ngcobo said.
The scientific evidence will be used to determine whether there is a need to change legislation.
The meeting follows the death of an eight-year-old boy who was killed by a pit bull in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
It is alleged the dog escaped from its enclosure and jumped over the fence into the neighbour’s premises to attack the child.
Sizwe Kupelo, who heads the Sizwe Kupelo Foundation, has since launched a petition, which he plans to submit to the department and canvass for a total ban of pit bulls as a domestic animal.
“We further call for regulation of other power breeds like Rottweiler, German shepherd and boerboel so that people [owners] can be required to undergo a basic training before they can keep those dogs and also get a licence.”
Kupelo’s foundation focuses on vulnerable children.
He was initially targeting 50,000 signatures but by last night the number had grown to 98,000 signatures.
Kupelo said he was waiting for the department to give a date to submit the petition in Pretoria. He said countries such as China, Denmark, Portugal and Canada had banned pit bulls
“We are not calling for the killing of the dog but we say it should be castrated and sterilised to prevent further breeding,” Kupelo said.
The call has divided society on social media, with some lashing out at owners who have proudly shown pictures of their pets.
Pitbull Federation of SA spokesperson Lehanda Rheeder said banning pit bulls would not work.
“If you ban the breed you will not get rid of the dog fighting [illegal competition].It is these people who are a problem. In a lot of instances, the pit bull owners are not looking after the dog the way they should.
“We disagree with the banning of any breed. The government must enforce laws for owning, breeding and rescuing of any power breed dog, including the pit bull terrier,” Rheeder said.
National Council of Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals spokesperson, Keshvi Nair, said it was unfortunate that it had taken the death of a child to discuss the issue of pit bulls.
She said they supported the call for stronger regulation regarding breeding and keeping of dangerous animals.
“If you ban the pit bulls, people who want to keep the dog will keep it illegally and that will affect the dog’s health. People will not be able to take it outside for a walk,” Nair said.
Public interest lawyer Richard Spoor said when dogs attack people, a common law principle is used by courts.
“It is the owner of the dog who is liable for injuries of a person who was lawfully at a place where they were attacked.”
He said the victim of the attack can lodge a civil claim against the dog owner and, in instances where one has died, the owner can face a culpable homicide charge.
dlaminip@sowetan.co.za
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