A dog was dumped with legs and jaw bound into a plastic packet, thrown into a dustbin, and beaten for over an hour. Left for dead and to be disposed of with the trash, he was fortunately discovered still alive when council workers tipped the bin into the rubbish truck.
Rushed to the SPCA animal hospital, Scruffy was in a desperate state, a fractured zygomatic arch and severe bruising and swelling were apparent. He had been beaten with significant force. His assailant was arrested later the same day and faces charges of animal cruelty. The SPCA is leading the charge for justice. Read more about Scruffy’s rescue here.
Our communications manager for the Cape of Good Hope SPCA, responsible for telling the stories of animal beneficiaries was so touched by this one that she and her partner adopted Harvey who came at a time when they had just lost a 15-year-old companion who had left a hole in their heart and in their home.
“They say that every dog that leaves you takes a piece of your heart with them and every new one that arrives gives you a piece of theirs. We can only hope this is true and that eventually when we’ve loved and lost enough, we’ll have a heart with the capacity to love unconditionally and without judgement just like dogs do.” – Cape of Good Hope SPCA Communications Manager Belinda Abraham
Scruffy is now called Harvey, there’s nothing scruffy about him. He’s the king of the household.
Initially, there were some fears to overcome, he was afraid of mops and brooms, jumped if the dustbin closed and cringed at the sound of the wheelie bin (the kind of bin he nearly died in), but thankfully with great advice from the SPCA’s on-site animal behaviourist, he’s growing in confidence in leaps and bounds, plays endlessly with toys and demolishes his food with relish.
He keeps his eyes on the trees for squirrels and takes great delight in chest rubs and nighttime snuggles. He loves his sister Marmite a very tolerant, grey-faced old lady who endures regular face and ear washes and regular smacks with whatever toy he’s vigorously shaking at the time. “He regularly gets the zoomies as well”, says Belinda, “which means our cushions are never where they should be anymore but neither are our hearts. This boy’s got them now”.
