Africa-Press – South-Africa. The City of Cape Town’s animal control unit has impounded nearly four times more dogs, cats and livestock than it did the previous year, rounding up 1 926 animals between July 2022 to March 2023.
For the same period in 2021, only 554 were impounded.
According to the City, it has seen a sharp increase in impoundment as ongoing complaints about stray and dangerous animals and barking were made.
Chairperson of the City’s portfolio committee on safety and security, Mzwakhe Nqavashe, said the statistics are “absolutely staggering” and place an immense burden on the animal control unit and the animal welfare organisations where the animals are taken for safekeeping.
“If they are not claimed by their owners or re-homed, euthanasia is the unfortunate last resort. This is not fair to our animal population, who deserve far better from us,” Nqavashe said.
Animals are impounded under various circumstances, including where they’ve been involved in an attack on another animal or person.
They are taken in if they are deemed to be stray animals or are roaming in areas where they present a danger to themselves and others, like roadways.
Public responsibility
In terms of the City’s Animal Keeping by-law, there is a limitation on the number of dogs or cats that can be kept, depending on the type and size of the property.
The by-law also requires that pets be registered with the City and mandatory sterilisation by the age of six months unless an exemption is granted in terms of the by-law.
“The registration of pets is completely free and can be done via our online portal. Registering your pets helps us set a benchmark for Cape Town’s pet population, which, in turn, helps determine the scale of interventions and budget required for animal matters.
“We are also looking to expand the scope of the registration portal to include sterilisation exemption applications and applications to keep additional animals,” added Nqavashe.
The City said, to date, 134 679 pets had been registered.
Of that, 100 522 are dogs and 34 157 are cats.
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